By the Light of the Moon
by TwilightRoseAlchemist
Summary: Serena is in our world and dreams of one day taking a journey of her own.So,after her 17th birthday she finds herself in a coma and awakes in Central and gets her wish.But when its time for her to go home,will she want to after being close to Ed and Al? (Finally back from Hiatus)
1. Prologue

**So I decided to try this again! I used to write a lot on fanfiction when I was younger and I am SO disappointed with a lot of my works…I was 14 but still haha. I loved this idea I had though and since I never finished it I decided it was time to try again and make it better!**

**I DO NOT OWN FULLMETAL ALCHEMIST AND NEVER WILL**

**Secondly, I do NOT tolerate flamers. It is unnecessary and does not help people improve. Nothing good comes from making a person feel bad. I know I cannot please everyone with this and if you notice things I can improve on feel free to tell me ****. **

**Lastly, I will mainly keep this bashed on the original series since I am not comfortable writing about Brotherhood yet because it is very new to me and I do not know the new characters enough to write them haha. I may add some things in for fun though.**

**Happy reading!**

**Prologue**

_The moon…it is so bright tonight. It's wonderful light cascades over the hills and embraces everyone with a glow just like the mighty sun. I do not think I have ever seen it so big before. Too bad I would not be able to sit and enjoy it like I wanted too.._

_I wanted to sit on one of those hills and watch the flowers dance it the breeze while Alphonse attempted to convince his brother to let him keep a small kitten he had found..I wanted to hear Edward complain about staring at the scenery long enough…I wanted to continue this journey along side them.._

_But you do not always get what you want in life.._

_The moon was so bright but it started to faded with my vision. I could hear the sweet laughter around me cease as familiar gold eyes covered the glorious moon._

_I never asked for any of this. I never asked to meet people I would love so much and then say good bye to them all in the end. All I wanted was to have a journey of my own and see the world..but like I said.._

_You do not always get what you want..and even so.._

_I am so glad that it did..because this was so much better than what I could have dreamed on my own._

**I know this is super short. It is after all a prologue. I had it longer but it just gave away too much and it would ruin the rest of the tale. I will try to update on a regular basis but I do have a job haha. I just finished my winter quarter of college and I'm on Spring Break so that will give me extra time to write! I am very excited to write this and finish it this time. **


	2. Chapter One: Super Moon

**And chapter one begins! Haha. This will be longer than the prologue of course because a prologue to me is meant to be short, and keep you wondering. **

**Again I do not own Fullmetal nor will I ever.**

**Every writers favorite part is a disclaimer -_-'**

**Happy Reading!**

**Chapter One: Super Moon**

"Happy Birthday to you! Happy Birthday to you! Happy Birthday dear Serena! Happy Birthday to you!"

I opened my eyes with a smile as my older brother, Aaron, jumped up and down on my bed with the largest, cheesiest grin I always saw on him when it was my birthday. Aaron slammed his body down next to mine and turned his smile into a sly grin. The next thing I knew I was shoved onto the floor and his laughter filled the house.

'What the hell was that for?" I shouted while standing up only to see my usually straight brown hair frizzed up like a lions mane from sleep.

Aaron hopped off my bed and quickly put me into a head lock.

"What kind of a big brother would I be if I didn't pick on you on this day of your birth?"

I screamed, which was also confused with laughter as I tried to wiggle my way out of his strong grasp. My brother was the top wrestler in the state before he graduated last year so it was always a losing battle when it came to our play.

He finally let me loose and told me to get ready. I could already smell my mother's famous apple pancakes. The aroma gave me the motivation to quickly complete my morning routine and run down the stairs.

My mother greeted me with her loving smile. Her brown eyes seemed to glow in the sunlight that shined through our window. She had the gentlest face and I was very glad to have those traits from her and that Aaron got my father's shoulders, strong chin and blue eyes.

"Happy Birthday sweetie," she said while handing me a plate of the delicious pancakes.

My mouth watered and I swallowed down those cakes faster than a starving bear tearing apart its prey. Aaron softly punched my shoulder with a grin.

"I knew I came to visit for a reason this morning. Mom, your apple pancakes are still number one in the universe!"

My smile turned into a fake pout as my brother ranted on about my birthday being a great excuse for mom's cooking. I knew he was kidding of course. I loved my brother very much, and it filled me with so much joy that he was the one waking me up on my birthday.

Aaron moved out shortly after his graduation and the house became so quiet after that. There were times when I could not wait for him to move out because he was a lot louder than a person should be and had a habit of walking around with heavy feet in the early morning when I wanted nothing but sweet silence. But now, I missed those heavy feet and late nights of monopoly and making kissy faces at him while he was on the phone with his now fiancé Sarah. Yeah, I had the greatest brother in the world.

"All joking aside," my brother began. "After your birthday dinner tonight, I say you and I watch the new Brotherhood episode tonight with some good old fashion Baskin Robins!"

My brown eyes lit up with excitement and I threw a cheerful punch into the air. Fullmetal Alchemist was Aaron's and mine show that we watched with faithfulness. Call me a nerd, but we even drove all the way from our home in Washington to Las Angeles, California just to attend a convention to see the voice actors. Rating: Best day of my life.

Mother rolled her eyes and laughed while she grabbed our empty dishes. Her and my father love to make fun of us and made it a point to tell Aaron that he was getting too old for cartoons.

"While all of that sounds very nice, you are going to be late for school if you do not leave now Serena."

It was then I gawked at the time. I had ten minutes to make it to school before first period started. Shooting up, I made a mad dash for the door with my backpack in hand. Clutching my car door I attempted to open it in vain as the locked door handle snapped out of my hand. An obnoxious whistle filled my ears as Aaron held my car keys in the air with my mother laughing behind him. Glaring, I stomped up to him and quickly snatched them away from him. I muttered a thank you as I tried to get rid of the heat rising into my cheeks.

"Have a great day at school, honey!" Mother called with a wave.

Flashing a grin and a peace sign I started my car, and pulled out of the family drive way.

"Yeah, have a great day sweeeeetiiie," Aaron joked sticking his tongue out.

I watched in the review mirror as my mother smacked him over the head and proceeded to wag her figure in a scolding manor.

"Take that!" I giggled while turning up my music as loud as my ears would permit. God, I loved driving my own car with my music at max.

~.~.~

Luckily, we had our state standardized testing today, so all of us juniors and seniors who passed our sophomore year were able to leave early today. What a wonderful birthday the school gave to me don't you think?

My best friend, Jessica, and I made faces at the other students in the classrooms we passed while they prepared to take their tests. Some of them laughed, as glared since we were leaving "hell" and heading home.

Jessica and I leaned on each other for support as we laughed our way off campus. Jessica quickly turned which led her curly blonde hair to whip me in the face.

"Owe geez Jess! You need to be careful with that whip you call hair!" I joked as I rubbed my eyes.

She slightly glared at me with her green eyes as her freckled nose scrunched.

"Ha, ha...funny...anyways! What are WE all having for dinner tonight! Your mom is the best cook EVA" She sang while jumping into my car.

"Since when was it we? It is called a family birthday dinner for a reason you know?"

Jessica only grinned and stuck her head out the window once we drove off with a laugh. She was a little strange at times but that is what made her such a great friend. I did not have to watch how I acted around her. I could be myself and even wilder and Jessica would never judge. Of course we have had our moments when I thought I would never be friends with her again, but who hasn't been through that.

"Well, I am practically family. So onward dear Serena! To dinner!" 

The rest of the day passed by quick while Aaron, Jessica, dad and I played various card games while mom carried on with dinner. Her homemade lasagna filled the air with so many smells all of us complained about being hungry many different times. Father tried to sneak us all some garlic bread but that resulted with a hard spatula smack to the hand. He sat the rest of our games with a huge pout on his lips.

"Everyone, quickly come outside!"

My mother's voice was filled with so much urgency that we all tossed our cards aside not caring if they were all spread out for the others to see and rushed to her side. However, nothing was wrong at all. No, it was something so amazing that I will never forget it.

The moon was very large. You could almost see every single one of the dark craters in its porcelain surface. It was producing a light so bright that we could turn off every light in the city and we would still be able to make out everything as if it were daylight. I closed my eyes and basked in its wonder while a warm breeze caressed my tanned skin.

"Wow…really? That's it?"

My eyes shot open as the beautiful moment was ruined by my unappreciative older brother started at the moon with a bored expression. My father mirrored him but he was smart enough to stay silent.

"What do you mean that's it? Have you ever seen the moon so big?" Jessica shouted with wonder.

"I heard that it was going to happen on the news. They called it a Super Moon. They say this is the closest the moon will be to the Earth's atmosphere for at least eighteen years," Aaron said while making his way back inside.

"Oh yeah! I heard they also said there could be tsunamis, earthquakes and even volcano eruptions," Jessica stated while skipped behind him.

My father grinned, and made a creepy smile. 

"Ooo, who knows what unexplainable things, could occur tonight," He whispered while I laughed nervously and quickly ran back inside.

With the moon as close as it was to the Earth, I would not be surprised if weird things happened tonight. It is so strange that something that normally looks so small to us holds so much power over our mighty planet.

"How about some dinner now, huh?"

We all smiled like small children and surrounded the dinner table. Birthdays were my favorite time of the year. It did not have to be mine for me to enjoy it. I loved when my family and best friend came together like this. I was not like the holidays when everyone and their mothers came over and it was difficult to speak to everyone at once. No, like this, with just us we could enjoy everyone's company with ease. I loved it.

~.~

Once dinner was over Aaron, Jessica and I sat on the couch glaring at our prized ice cream since our full bellies would not allow a single bite. It was very tempting though.

"Whoohoo!" Aaron and I echoed as Fullmetal Alchemist appeared on the screen.

Jessica made a disgusted grunt and slowly stood from the couch with a moan from her full stomach.

"You nerds enjoy."

We both paid her no mind as we laughed at the protagonist of the show, Edward Elric, shouted at his enemy for being called short. It was then that all the lights shut off and singing voices filled my ears and my mother walked in carrying a cake glowing with seventeen candles and Jessica and father shortly behind her. She set the cake in front of me as their birthday song ended.

"Make a wish sis!"

Biting my lip I wondered what I could possibly wish for. Fame? Fortune? My eyes zoned out to the television screen and I watched the two main characters laugh and hop onto a train waving good-bye to their childhood friend. It looked like so much fun. How great would it be to travel like they do? To meet so many people and help those in need along the way. I smiled once I wish came to mind.

'I wish to have the greatest journey of my life.' I thought with eyes shut tight, and with that I blew out every candle.

Cheers filled the room, and Aaron shoved me off the coach.

"Okay conceited, I know this day is about you but you are taking precious TV. time from me."

I rolled my eyes and pulled myself back into my spot. Yeah, I loved my family.

~.~.~

Once Jessica had left I stretched out with a very unlady like yawn. Aaron walked up with a smile and for once gave me a gentle embrace.

"It's time for me to head home to sis. Happy birthday though," he said gently.

I frowned slightly but quickly smiled and shoved him out the door.

"Monopoly rematch tomorrow! We have to beat Sarah this time! I don't care if you win as long as she loses!" I called while he walked to his truck.

"It's a promise!"

And with that he was gone which meant I could finally go to sleep. Mom and dad had long ago retied to their rooms so I quietly made my way to my own room so I would not wake them. Lying down for a moment I stared out my window at the glorious moon. It seemed much brighter now for some reason. My eyes were heavy so I did not give it a second thought before darkness consumed my world.

~.~.~

"Serena you are going to be late for school!" Mellissa shouted from down the hall. It was third time she had called for her daughter to wake up and it normally only took once since Serena was such a light sleeper.

When no response came, she sighed and marched into her daughter's room. A gentle smile crossed her face as she watched Serena asleep with her legs dangling off the edge of her bed.

"She must have been so tired last night she did not even bother change," Melissa muttered while softly caressing her child's cheek. Her smile turned into a frown when she noticed how cold Serena felt.

"Sweetie, time to wake up."

No response. Not even a stir.

"Serena..." This time a bit louder, and each attempt to wake her sleeping daughter became a bit more urgent.

"Charles! Get in here! Serena won't wake up…CHARLES!"

~.~.~.~

Aaron sat with his face in his large palms while his fiancé, Sarah, rubbed his back with a worried expression. Serena's family sat in the hospitals waiting room very tense. Tears filled her mother's eyes while her father paced the room. After what felt like eternity, Serena's doctor came through the doors and they were all on their feet within seconds.

The doctor looked puzzled but also very scared. Melissa shook her head and the tears escaped.

"Just say it," she hissed with anger not directed toward the doctor.

"It seems that…your daughter is in a coma."

~.~.~

"Miss…heeeellloooo?"

Who is that? My eyes slowly opened only to quickly shut once the blinding sun came into view.

'Why is it so bright? I didn't open my blinds' I thought while sitting up.

But while I was doing so, I noticed instead of my hands coming into contact with soft sheets it was very hard, cold ground. In fact, the air around me was not something I felt in my home. There was no vanilla smell that my mom's candles smelt like. No, it smelt like a busy city.

Attempting to open my eyes again, I let them come into focus. Fear filled my body and I backed up into a nearby wall. I was in an alley. Had I been kidnapped in my sleep? I'm sure I looked like a scared little child as I looked quickly around me. What the hell happened? Where were my mom and dad? Crap, where the hell was I?

"Hey take easy now. No one's going to hurt you."

This voice sounded familiar to me but I could not place it. My mind was clouded with too many thoughts to even begin with that now. So, I turned to the source of the voice and stopped there. My eyes had still not adjusted well enough to see the figures standing in the sun's rays, but I saw enough of them to question my sanity.

Large amounts of silver like armor, and a red blur stood next to shadow. The red one bent down a bit out of the sun's glare and I was finally able to make out gold eyes, matching hair tied into a braid and a very bored face.

"You okay miss?" The taller one behind him asked.

I met his gaze and squinted a bit, and nodded slowly with my nose scrunched.

"Peachy."

And with that darkness fell as I slid down the cold wall.

**So there is chapter one. I think seven pages is enough for tonight. I have work in the morning to so this is a good stop. I used spell check but I am sure there are errors that need to be worked out. I have no editor so please don't judge haha. I take criticism though! **** Hope you enjoyed!**


	3. Chapter Two: Teach Me

**I appreciate the reviews! Means a lot to see that people are, so far, enjoying it. **

**I do not own Fullmetal Alchemist. **

**Chapter Two:**

**Teach Me**

_Beep…beep…beep_

My eyes felt so heavy. The beeping sounds of machines and voices echoing around me sounded like I was in an amusement park. I smiled a little when I felt soft sheets on my finger tips. Perhaps all that cake and ice cream while watching _Brotherhood_ caused some dreams.

That thought quickly disappeared when I opened my eyes to find myself in a very unfamiliar hospital. When I was younger, I had broken my wrist, arm, ankle, and then my other arm all in the same year just because Aaron and I liked to climb trees and I am not the most graceful person in the world. So, I had become very acclimated the our town's Hospital and most of the people who worked there, but this lady who was reading a chart on the other side of the room was no one I recognized and her uniform was a different color. Maybe they changed uniforms and hired someone new?

No...The room I was in was a soft cream color and the sheets were white. I was used to navy blue sheets and white walls. The machinery also seemed off. Was it…out of date technology? This was too much to take in at the moment and I was most likely over thinking the situation. Why would my parents take me to a hospital anyways? I do not remember getting hurt at all last night.

"You're awake! How are you feeling? I'm nurse Alley. The doctor will be in here shortly to see you."

Her voice was so kind and gentle. She was even smiling.

"I'm fine I guess…where am I?"

I wanted to get straight to the point. There was no reason for me to beat around the bush and just smile and play nice. I wanted to hear her say "Port Angeles Hospital" and get these entire ridiculous motions out of my head.

"Central Hospital. Two boys found you in an alley unconscious so they kindly brought you here. Do you not remember anything?"

I think she continued to speak from there, but she lost me at Central...There is no city in Washington named Central and I am pretty sure there is not any in the United States for that matter. I had only heard that name once and I was watching TV with Aaron...Was this one of his sick jokes?

"Did Aaron put you up to this?" I asked with a small smile. Yeah, that was it. My brother wanted to play a practical joke. Perfect sense.

"I'm sorry who?" She had the most confused expression on her face that I had to five my brother congratulations on this one.

"It's okay I know my brother put you up to this." I answered her with a laugh.

However, Nurse Alley did not seem like the way I was speaking because once the door opened to reveal a white coated, what I could only guess was a doctor, man she looked at him with concern. I frowned at this. There is a point when jokes did stop being funny.

"We don't know who she is. My brother found her in an alley passed out."

That voice brought the image of two shadowed figures to mind. Turning my head slightly to see behind the doctor, I saw the owner of the voice leaning on a wall away from me but I could still see his blonde braided hair and red coat. The kind of image was not one to be mistaken. Perhaps someone just enjoying some cosplay? If so, they did one hell of a job because once the doctor moved and allowed me to see the boy full on; he looked exactly like Edward Elric.

"Sir, she may be suffering amnesia of some sorts..." Nurse Alley stated but her voice trailed off into a whisper and it was not loud enough for me to hear.

Looking over to the "cosplayer" again my eyes widened as his partner dressed in a large suit of armor appear beside him. 'Nice,' I thought with a small smile. However, when Aaron and I took our trip to Las Angeles to the anime convention we did see a lot of Alphonse cosplayers, but none of them looked as good as this person did. They had cardboard in the shape of his armor and painted silver, but this kid had actual hard armor.

"Perhaps a dream," I whispered to myself.

_Prick..._

I shooting pain shot up my arm. Out of all the bones I had broken and the couple times I was not put to sleep while they reset my arm, shots and needles were one thing I would not mess with, and I will fight to keep anything remotely close to a needle away from me, but they got me while I was not paying attention.

"Owe!"

It was too late for me to pull away from the doctor now because he was drawing blood. I always feared if I jerked too much that the needle would break and be stuck in my skin. Realization hit me as fast as the blood leaving my body was. I had felt pain. I can still feel the needles resting in my arm and the blood being sucked into its new home. You are not supposed to feel anything in dreams.

"Well, all done there…sorry it seems you are going to bruise a bit. I am going to send you off since you are not in any physical harm. I took your blood sample to be tested just in case you may have anemia or anything that could cause fainting,"

The Doctor spoke in such a sincere tone I was almost willing to forgive him for stabbing my arm with the sinful object. Almost.

"Do you know who you are?" He suddenly asked me.

"My name is Serena," I whispered staring at the blonde boy and his armored friend again.

The blonde one seemed bored and well it was hard to say what the metal one was feeling. It was not like I could see his face and read his emotions.

"Where do you live?"

"Washington."

"I'm sorry, where?"

That was it. I started up at the doctor with my eyes so wide and I had no idea how to respond to him. So, I woke up in an alley and now I am in a Hospital in Central which only exists in Fullmetal Alchemist. The two main characters had found me and all these probably think I am some alien…literally. Well, the only logical thing that seemed to pop into my head was to play along.

"I don't really remember."

If all of this seems to be what I think it may be then I have to fit into this somehow. I cannot just say "Yeah, I'm from the year 2011 and I see these two on TV all the time. I live in the United States of America where my President won the Nobel Peace prize and gave that money to the military. We are that badass." That idea only ended with me in the Psychward.

I was not paying attention to much that happened after that. Before I knew it I was standing near the entrance and signing a release form. I was writing with my opposite had since my other arm was numb for the blood draw and I have to say I was born right handed for a reason.

"So, are you feeling any better now miss?" The armor, who I already knew as Alphonse asked me suddenly. I did not notice they were still around. I could tell his brother wanted to be long gone though.

"Um, yeah. Thank you for your help. You can call me by my name though you know," I smiled while walking out into the fresh air.

The city looked a lot different than what I was used to seeing. It was actually a lot bigger. Even though there were no skyscrapers, I think New York City would be put to shame. An echoing giggled escaped from the boy behind me now.

"Then you should call me by name too! I am Alphonse Elric."

The one hope I had was that he would introduce himself by another name. Oh well. Just keep going with it I guess. Even though I had seen every episode I did not know a thing about this town. I know that Hughes and his family live here, well I hope Hughes is still here anyways, and that the Military headquarters was too, but the thing is…I had no idea where. So it was time to weight my options:

One: I could say adieu and try to find my way home alone.

Two: Stay with Alphonse and Edward here and work with the people who know this world, and happen to be super smart and get home faster and more efficient...

Yeah, option two sounds better...Well; time to play this right then.

"Elric...as in the Elric brothers?" I said adding some excitement to my voice.

"You've heard of us?" Edward asked stepping forward with a very smug grin and puffing his chest out a bit.

"Of course. You have to be Edward Elric then right? The famous Fullmetal Alchemist? You just have to be."

I knew his ego would be the perfect place to start. So many people mixed up his brother Al with being the Fullmetal that if I assumed the truth Edward would be very pleased. And of course...

"Why yes I am." Edward answered with his smug grin widening more.

..I was right.

"I'm lucky you both came across me then. You have to know this city like the back of your hand?"

"Yeah, we have been here a lot," Al answered me and I could hear the smile in his voice.

"I don't remember much of anything. If it's not too much to ask, could you show me around town a bit?"

Knowing the brothers, I'm sure they were in town for a reason and they wanted to get moving as fast as possible...so it was a lot to ask them that.

"Well, we were heading over to the HQ, and that is on the other side of town so it won't be out of our way to show you around," Edward stated but it was more of a thought process than anything.

"Brother, you're being…nice."

He sounded surprised. And I would be too if I was watching this in the comfort of my home on the television.

"Well, what kind of hero of the people would I be after all?"

Annnd….there it was. I wanted to laugh like I always did when his ego was the motivation for these types of things, but this was no longer for my entertainment. This was very real at the moment.

~.~.~.~

I sat in the hallway of the Military base with Alphonse while Edward was reporting in with Colonel Mustang. They had just returned from the city of Lior, which was a good thing for me to know since I now knew what time period I was in.

My face was buried in my hands. Central was a lot bigger than I thought. There was no way I could find my way back to the Hospital if I even wanted to. What was I going to do?

"Did you see anything you recognized?"

Al...He is so sweet. Through the whole journey here he spoke to me as if he knew me his whole life. He was such a gentle spirit. I knew this while I watched the show, but there is something so different about actually having him in front of me now that made me see how sweet, and young Alphonse really is. I got used to knowing is story and feeling bad for him, but watching him and his brother be so tough kind of dilutes the reality.

"No...Nothing at all. I don't think I'm from Central actually. The place I envision is a small town and lots of green." I said. This was true. That is the kind of place I am from.

"Hmm…do you remember anything else about it?"

I let out a huge breath and stood to my feet.

"You wouldn't believe me if I told you."

I do not know what made me say that, but being around the Elric brothers for the hour tour they gave me made me not want to lie to them. Besides, it would not take them long to figure it all out.

"Try me."

Al and I turned our attention over to Edward who was leaning against a nearby wall. Neither of us had no clue how long he had been there, but he did not look happy in the slightest.

"I think that's a story for a later day," I replied softly.

Edward raised his eyebrow slightly but motioned for Alphonse to follow. I did not know if I should go to since it looked like they were heading into Mustang's office, but my question was answered when Al turned toward me and waved me over.

"Are you coming?"

I have to admit I was slightly excited. Roy Mustang was on the other side of this door. I know it seems kind of fan crazy, but come on the guy creates flame from a snap. Very cool.

"Well now Fullmetal who's this? New girlfriend?" Roy asked with a grin.

My face lit up at least three colors. Typical Mustang joke yes, and again normally I would have laughed but now I just wanted to smack the guy.

"No! This is Serena we found her on the street and she doesn't remember who she is so we're helping her out jeez..."

He spoke very fast. In fact, I'm not even sure if I heard him right. Roy laughed a little and waved it off.

"Calm down it was a joke…now on a more serious note…I asked you to check on the town not take out its prized prophet," Mustang continued with a small glare.

I coughed as to suppress a laugh. I remembered this scene very well. Edward sat with his eyes narrowed and arms crossed.

"He had a philosopher's stone so we had to act," Edward hissed.

"And?"

"It turned out to be a fake. It rebounded on him..."

The image of the prophet Cornello appeared in my head and I shivered at the thought. I knew his fate after the brothers had left. That man was no more than happy meal for Gluttony by now.

"But fake or not. It did give us a lead. Somehow he got that stone, and he performed transmutation almost like it was the real deal so…"

I do not know where my head was and what on earth I was thinking when I opened my mouth. I had a knack for speaking randomly and right now was not the time for that...

"It was red water. An imperfect stone. Not completed because it is missing a key ingredient."

They were all looking at me now and it was then that I thought about taking option one now.

"How do you know that?"

Mustang was suspicious of me now. He had the right too. I am someone who claimed to have amnesia and I just spoke red water like I was some master scientist. Very smart move...

"I'm not sure…it kind of just popped to mind..." I lied filling my voice with sadness and staring down at my feet. I was never a good liar but hopefully today was my day.

Thankfully it was. They moved on into their conversations almost like I was not there, but I could tell that Edward's mind was now working at a very fast passed. He spoke to Mustang like he was hardly present. We left the room not long after with Edward having orders to see the town on Xenotime. Perhaps my little outburst could work to my advantage. After all, the discovery of red water is in Xenotime.

"Edward..."

We were outside now and the people who passed by us were so caught up in their own lives that it did not matter what was spoken now. Edward turned and gave me his full attention and I could see the questions he had burning in his eyes.

"So, I'm guessing that the rumors of you searching for the Philosopher's stone are true..." I trailed off and he only shifted his head to the side in response.

I was starting to feel a little uncomfortable under their gazes now and it did not help one bit that Alphonse was seven feet tall.

"I can't say how I know, but I may be able to help you…but I need something from you too."

There was some hope in his eyes. I knew how bad he wanted the stone. I saw it every Tuesday night, but with him standing in front of me, seeing the burden he carried made my heart ache...maybe in all of this I could do something useful. Many people wanted the brother's to have a happy ending. Hell, some of us go as far as to cry every time they went through something that made their situation worse. Perhaps, I could try to shed some light somewhere in the darkest part of their lives. They deserved it. That is when a smile appeared on my lips.

I heard a train far off in the distance and my heart raced a bit faster. The journey I wanted…It was time to take advantage of my situation here, and make the most of it.

"I can help you, but please, teach me alchemy!"

I'll have to admit I sounded a little desperate, but how awesome would it be to become an alchemist. Edward frowned a bit and turned away.

"No."

My jaw dropped a bit. That was not the answer I was expecting. I mean, I just offered him secrets of the stone and he turns it down…then again…I should have been expecting it.

"If I teach you then that means you'll have to come with us, and you'll only get in the way."

"That's not very nice, brother!" A scolded but I gave him a reassuring smile.

"I promise I won't!"

"No."

"Please?"

"No!"

I felt like I was arguing with Aaron. It was very childish of me to just be begging him over and over again, but I just could not help him. I ran up and clutched onto his arm, and shivered slightly when I realized it was his automail.

"Come on, I know a few things on the stone. Besides, who better to learn from than the famous Fullmetal Alchemist himself?" I was playing with his ego again.

"I mean, you're practically the best...aren't you?"

Edward looked down at me and his signature smug look returned.

"Not to brag or nothin' I am pretty good."

I heard Alphonse sigh and let out a small laugh.

"Brother, we can teach her. She said she can help us. Besides, where else can she go?"

I was very thankful for Alphonse and this moment. Edward turned away from me and ruffled his hair while he sighed in aggravation. He turned around suddenly with a very stern look, and both Al and I looked down to the ground defeated.

"Fine, but I am tough on my students!"

My eyes lit up and I threw my fist up into the air and hugged Al. His armor was warm because of the beating sun. I do not know why, but I felt comfortable with the brothers already.

"Whoohoo!" I yelled while running down the steps with Al as we followed Edward down.

Remember how I mentioned I was not the most graceful person in the world? Well, I was so absorbed in the joy of Edward agreeing to teach my alchemy that I tripped on the last step and landed on my knee. I was not too bad but it was enough to cause some blood drips.

"Son of a mmmfffmm!" I murmured holding in the curses. "That hurt…"

Edward and Alphonse started at me with surprise and before I knew it they were laughing at me. And I mean really laughing. I narrowed my eyes and glared at them a bit while crossing my arms.

"I'm glad my pain amuses you," I hissed slightly.

A white gloved hand stretched out to me while the owner's laugh started to slow down. I looked up at them with a smile. This was nice. My heart warmed up as I watched both of them have a moment of laughter. I wanted it to be like this. I wanted this journey to be full of laughter.

Taking his hand so I could stand to my feet, Alphonse ran a head a bit and waved both of us to follow.

"How about a race to the train?" He shouted.

"You're on!"

And with that Edward raced ahead of both of us.

"What ever happened to ready, set, go?" I yelled while chasing after them.

"Take this as lesson one! Be ready for anything."

Even though this journey was a lot more than what I had wished for, I was ready to take it head on. I would make the best of this. I just wander...will I ever be able to go home?

~.~.~.~.~

Melissa sat beside her sleeping daughter with dark circles under her eyes. She had refused to sleep a wink since the doctor had informed them of Serena's coma. None of it made any sense to her. Her daughter had always been a healthy young girl and she never showed an signs of anything that would make her this way. And just the night before she had been laughing and even wrestling on the floor with her brother. So why had this happened.

Their family doctor had returned with a few needles in hand. Aaron, who was sitting in a chair across the room, let out a small laugh.

"You're lucky she's passed out. She wouldn't hesitate to kick you in the nuts if you came at her with that..."

Melissa started at her oldest son with disapproval.

"Sorry that was a bad joke. I make jokes when I'm nervous..." He muttered

Melissa could only smile. It was one of Aaron's traits that either worked to this advantage or got him into trouble, but now she was grateful for it.

"Has anyone else been by to take blood," the doctor asked suddenly.

Charles shook his head as he sat down by his wife.

"No."

The Doctor narrowed his eyes and flipped through a clipboard that was hanging off the end of Serena's bed.

"No one has been by, but she has a bruise on her arm right where someone would draw blood, and the vein is collapsed...this is strange…has she had any injuries lately?"

The doctor continued to ask questions and they all seemed to end in more confusion. Aaron stared down at his sister and placed a hand on her knee. His baby sister meant a lot to him and although she used to annoy him whenever his friends came over and embarrass him, he would take back the moments he yelled at her for it instead of having her in a coma.

Aaron raised an eyebrow and started down at his hand as something wet touched his skin. Lifting his hand, he let out a gasp and stared at the blood that was leaking through the sheets.

"Doc, what the hell is going on here?"

**And end chapter two. Ten pages are enough for me! Haha. So Edward has an apprentice now! I feel like the beginning dragged on a bit too much but maybe that's just me! Tell me what you think!**


	4. Chapter Three:Harder than it Looks

**So I changed my mind. Netflix has part 1 and part 2 of Brotherhood and I am now going to change things up a bit. There is going to be a mix going on here. Like I said, I need a certain part of the original series, but the way Brotherhood goes in the beginning is perfect for my ideas. So chapter two has changed only in one way. No Xenotime. **

**I do not own Fullmetal Alchemist…still….**

**Chapter Three:**

**Harder than it Looks**

"_Train Station Closed for Repairs."_

The sign blew and the wind and all three of us started at it with black expressions. Since when did a train ever experience technical difficulties?

"You have got to be kidding me!"Edward yelled stomping off.

"Brother, wait!"

Tilting my head to the side I stared at the sign long and hard. I did not remember this happening in the series at all. The brothers were supposed to board the train and meet their imposters. So what was going on now? Snapping out of my little trance I ran after the brothers before they got too far ahead. Edward was mumbling things about "losing time," and "just my luck." I think there were some curses in there too.

"So…now what are we gonna do?" I asked slowly: almost afraid to interrupt his quiet ranting.

He stopped suddenly and turned to me with a glare. Alphonse and I stepped back a bit. What on earth did I do? Edward snatched my arm and dragged me down the street.

"Guess I'll teach you something. Come one Al! Let's go to Central Library for now."

~.~.~.~

So many books. We were only ten minutes in and my head was already pounding. It seemed so easy when they performed alchemy! Edward just clapped his hands and BOOM! Strange objects that looked like him on command. Even Alphonse made it look like a walk in the park. But there were so many equations and different diagrams.

"Water, 35 liters. Carbon, 20kg. Ammonia, 4 liters. Lime, 1.5kg. Phosperus, 800g. Salt, 250 g. Saltpeter, 100g. Sulphur, 80g. Fluorine, 7.5g. Iron, 5g. Silicon 3g. And trace amounts of fifteen other elements."

I had heard him say this before. It was the ingredients to the human body. I started at him with heavy eyes.

"You lost me at carbon..." I muttered.

Edward sighed while Al let out some laughs. I was never really good at science or math at that and alchemy had a lot of both. Great...

"Okay look, the array of a transmutation circle is a source of energy…"

Rubbing my eyes, I continued to stare at the books in front of me.

"Uggh!" And with that I slid out of my chair and onto the ground.

"This isn't as difficult as you're making it Serena," Alphonse stated while I saw him bend down to look at me under the table.

"I failed science twice when I was in junior high! My teacher was always gone because she had random seizers in the middle of class." I stated staring up at the oak above me.

"What!"

Carefully standing so I would not hit my head, I stared at the brothers who were busy imagining what I had just told them.

"I just never been very good science..."

Edward stared at me. There was a lot going through his mind I could tell but the way he was looking at me made me nervous.

"You can remember all that huh?"

My brown eyes widened. I had said too much again. I decided not to answer him. It seems that staying silent was going to save me a lot around the most observant people in the world.

"Well, I'm your teacher now." Edward finally said with a huge grin.

Was he going to let it go that easily? Either way, it would be best to just let it drop. Maybe one day I would be able to tell them.

"That's right. If anyone can help you my brother can. He helped me on things I couldn't understand!"

Suddenly, Edward knocked down my glass of water and spilt everywhere and started to drip onto my dark blue jeans.

"Hey what was that for?" I yelled standing to my feet before the water could completely soak me.

"Transmute something out of the water."

It was more of a demand rather than a request. I stared at him with disbelief. What could he expect me to do? I was not even all that great at drawing a transmutation circle yet. I mean, how many people can draw a perfect circle…well, everyone here I guess.

So I sat down again, but in a dry chair, and held a pen in my hand. The paper was mocking me. I could feel it. Edward let out a sigh.

"Try it," Alphonse urged gently.

"How am I supposed to draw a perfect circle?" My nose was scrunched and I felt a little embarrassed.

Here I was next the naturals of alchemy and I cannot even draw a simple circle. Something cold took my hand and it began to move like a puppet. I looked up at Edward as his automail guided me through the process. My face heated up a bit as he slowly turned my hand and a perfect transmutation circle was taking form.

"It's just like this. The perfect of drawing the array improves your alchemy." He actually sounded gentle.

"There." He pulled away and gave me a smile.

"Now, transmute the water into an ice sculpture of a horse." He demanded taking a seat next to Al.

"And...How do I do that?" I asked with a nervous laugh.

"Were you paying attention to anything we talked about earlier," Alphonse said shaking his head.

I looked down at the circle and then to the water. Closing my eyes I placed my hands down onto the array and felt the water beneath my fingers. It felt so cool. I started to remember the time Jessica and I were swimming in the lake near her house. It was a warm day so it was perfect for swimming.

We were very young then so we were swimming around pretending to be on a very important mission. I dove down to find the "key" that the evil over lord through and I ended up seeing the most beautiful blue roses swaying in the current. My mother refused to believe they were there…

"Serena open your eyes!"

I was taken away from my memories and opened my eyes like Alphonse had requested.

"What's wrong," I asked slightly afraid.

"Well, it's not a horse but good first shot!" Edward congratulated.

There before was a ice rose. Though it did not look very much like a beautiful one that I had imagined. Actually, it was very deformed and wilted.

"What the hell is that supposed to be anyways," Edward asked while laughing.

"A fish?" Alphonse asked.

I crossed my arms and pouted my lips. I knew my first transmutation was not all that great but at least it was not out of recognition.

"It's a rose," I whined.

Both of them stood and examined it closely. Occasionally looking up at me, to each other than back at the rose again.

"Oh shut up it's not that bad!"

They were still laughing. So, I looked down at my mess again and for a moment I did see a fish looking up at me. My lips twitched into a smile and soon I was laughing as well.

"Ok-Ok…It's bad but come on stop making fun of me!"

Edward let out his last laugh and picked up the books and carefully put them back into their perspective places.

"I think that's enough for today."

~.~.~.~

It was dark out and all of the stars shined with brilliance. There was no moon out tonight so they were even brighter than normal.

"Is the sky beautiful?" I sang while skipping beside Alphonse.

"It sure is," He agreed.

"Meh, this is nothing compared to what we've seen back home," Edward piped in walking with his hands behind his head.

"Oh yeah! We live in a place where there are no city lights, so you can almost all of the stars at night!"

I could tell Alphonse really enjoyed his memories. It was something that reminded him that he was real and not some created being. I smiled up at his innocence. In that moment, I wanted to Alphonse in his own body and enjoying that night sky while feeling cold grass beneath him.

"We'll take you there sometime," he continued.

I smiled at the thought.

"I would love to see Risembool one day."

Both of them stopped in place but I kept walking without a care in the world.

"How did you know that?" Edward asked. There was anger in his voice.

"What are you talking about?"

My smile slowly faded as I realized what I had just said. My had flew up to my mouth as I tried to think of every possible excuse but nothing that would work came to mind.

"We...never told you where we're from..."Al whispered sadly.

Oh god, he was starting to think that I could be one of their enemies. Edward came at me then and grabbed my shoulder.

"You seem to know a lot of things…how is that?"

"I…I..."

"Tell me!"

Letting out a sigh, I dropped my head in defeat. I guess now was a good time to try and explain things. Hopefully, after everything they had seen they would not think I was crazy.

"Fullmetal Alchemist: Edward Elric."

That voice…it was so dark and raspy. Releasing my shoulder Edward turned to face the new comer while Alphonse pulled me behind him. Peering around him I gasped and backed away when I saw those dark glasses, tanned skin, and the large X on the man's forehead. This man was someone I never could quite understand in the show and he was my brother's favorite, but at the moment…this man made fear crawl into every inch of my body.

"Scar…"

**Two chapters in one day. I feel pretty proud of myself. This one is a bit shorter, but I had to get it in so I can make the changes I needed.**


	5. Chapter Four: Understanding

**So I am so happy about how many hits this story as gotten so far and all the e-mails I'm getting for people favoritig and putting it on their alerts. Thank you! Even though this is all amazing to me and I hope I am not asking too much, but I would love to see more reviews! Hearing what you all have to say! **** I am Thankful for the attention it is getting though haha **

**I know in Brotherhood Scar has blue sparks with his alchemy, but I am going to use red in this one just so it is easier to distinguish Edward and Scar's alchemy a part.**

**Chapter Four:**

**Understanding**

It happened so fast. The only thing my eyes were able to register was his raised hand and then Alphonse pulling Edward out of Scar's destructive path. I knew what he was here for. Scar was out for blood. Every state alchemist was on his list. It did not matter to him if Edward was one of the few alchemists that lived by the code 'Be though for the people.' State Alchemists were the cause of his people's demise, and Scar would make sure that every single one of them shared the same fate.

Edward, coming to from shock, clapped his hands and slammed them to the ground. Blue lightening erupted from beneath his hands as the cement sprang upward created a separation between us and Scar.

"What the hell is going on here?" Edward demanded.

"You might want to step back..."

My voice was hardly there. I knew the next few moments very well. I had jumped at every moment Scar had come place to killing the brother's and now that he was standing on the opposite side of the wall…I was terrified…and right at the moment where I could have been the most useful. Red sparks shined brightly and a large hole in Edward's wall came crashing through.

Scar took very painfully slow, steps forward. There was so much anger in his eyes and his arm of destruction was rising once more looking for Edward to murder. But Edward was frozen stiff just as much as Alphonse and I were.

"Let's go! We have to run for it!" Edward finally shouted once he found his courage again.

Turning around, there were stone steps leading to the streets below us and we took our chance to head there. It seemed so much darker outside now so the path before us was hard to see and once the rain began to pour down it only got worse. Once we had started to decend Scar had destroyed the wall above and jumped down into our path.

"No you don't"

Clenching his hand on the stone rail, red lightening emerged once more and the ground beneath our feet disappeared leaving us to fall to the staircase below us. Edward, being quick on his toes, clapped his hands creating a pillar we held onto that led to freedom. Once the pillar went as far as it could go we ran. We ran as fast as our bodies would allow.

I remember having the worst nightmares. I would always be running from something, and it would feel as if someone was holding a great weight on me and I could not run. I would be forever running in place. Well, this is exactly what that felt like. I knew I was moving, but it seemed I would never get away.

"Dammint, what the hell is this guys problem? Making enemies isn't something that I…." Edward's face fell for a moment.

"Well, I never really avoided it, but there is no reason someone should be trying to kill me," he finished while looking back at Scar who was starting to catch up.

We were passing so many people in our run. A part of me wanted to scream at them. "Help us!" But there was nothing they could do. In fact, they would only die just for getting into Scar's way. We were on our own. We made a break into an alley hoping that we would lose him, but once those red sparks flew by us I cursed myself for not remembering this sooner. The alley wall fall down and blocked the path in front of us. Rumble that we could not pass in front, and Scar standing behind us. We were trapped.

"Who are you anyway? Why are you after us?" Edward demanded.

"As long as there are creators like you in the world, there must also be destroyers." Scar replied with a deep frown.

"It looks like we'll have to fight."

Edward clapped his hands and touched a pipe that was in the rumble. The pipe quickly turned into a small hand sword. Holding it up ready for battle, Alphonse took his stance beside Edward.

"Stand back," Al whispered to me gently.

I only nodded. There was nothing I could do. 'You would just get in the way.' Edward's words echoed in my mind. Maybe this was a bad idea. They had enough to worry about as it was. I looked up to see Scar smile.

"Gutsy one aren't you?"

Edward sprang forward with Alphonse quickly following.

"But," Scar's hand clenched once more and easily dodged their oncoming blows. "Two slow."

His destructive palm lightly touched Alphonse's armor, but it was enough to tear half of his body into pieces…and there was no one inside that armor.

"Al!"

Scar started at Alphonse with shock plainly all over his face. The fact that he was hollow was enough for even the busiest person to stop and stare at.

"You bastard!" Edward shouted while striking at him once more.

But once again he was too slow. Scar caught Edward's arm and attempted to destroy it, but it only sent a shock wave that sent Edward tumbling backward.

"Dammint!" Edward stood to his feet and removed his red coat now revealing his automail arm.

This was it. Scar now knew the components of Edward's arm so he could easily smash it to pieces with his next attack. Edward clapped his hands together once more and turned his automail into his signature blade.

"Brother, don't! Just run away!" Alphonse called out desperately while attempting to hold himself up with his remaining arm.

"You idiot! I'm not just gonna leave you behind!"

"You press your hands together to make a ring and then you perform transmutation..." Scar to his fighting stance "...Now I see."

Looking at Alphonse and then back to Edward and Scar, I knew what needed to be done next. I had the one upper hand they needed. I knew Scar's next move. Once Edward took a step toward Scar, he would catch his arm and destroy Edward's arm leaving him powerless. I HAD to do something. Maybe I was not the great alchemist and I had no idea how to even throw a punch, but I could do enough to buy Edward time. Maybe I could change this outcome to a better ending. Taking the small piece of chalk from my pocket, I smiled at the puddle of water that lay beneath my feet. I had to admit, for drawing the circle on my own, it did not look half bad.

"Alphonse stay down, and Edward, duck!" I called while pressing my hands down onto the transmutation circle. Out of the sparkling blue, ice spikes sprang forward and headed straight for my target: Scar.

"Huh...HEY!" Edward shouted while barely throwing himself to the ground in time.

Upon Scar hearing my voice, he had turned fast enough to get out of harm's way. It probably was not the best aim anyways.

"You idiot!" Edward cursed while standing to his feet once more.

"What were you thinking?"

This was the next part I had not thought through. How were we going to run with Alphonse in the situation he was in now. I was hoping Edward would have the answer to that.

"Edward, I'll explain how I know this later, but please! We have to run now!" I sounded desperate and I was.

Another thing I had not counted on. Scar being angry enough at me to come rushing my way. Of course he would. I got in his way after all. Letting out a scream, I moved fast enough for his hand to miss, but not quickly enough for the flying debris to miss my face. Moving to Alphonse's side, I clutched his arm and searched for anything that may help move him. But there was nothing. A dark shadow embraced us and I looked up to see Scar glaring down.

"Anyone who gets in the way must perish. So is the will of God," and with that he lunged forward. Red sparks glowing from his hand.

Closing my eyes, I tried to cover Alphonse the best I could. I do not know what impulse I had at the moment to do so, but I felt I had to. I may have seen the brother's for years on television and felt something for them as characters, but after spending, even just one day of time with them was enough to care for their well being. I expected death to be painful…but it never came. Somewhere between the time of my eyes shutting and Scar coming for us Edward had stepped into the way and now his automail arm was held in Scar's grasp. So it was meant to happen anyways. Within seconds, Edward's arm lay shattered into a thousand pieces.

"Brother!"

"Now you will not be able to use your heretic's alchemy. I'll give you a moment to pray to God." Scar stated while taking steps closer to Edward. 

"Brother run away!" Alphonse continually tried to convince him to run but his pleas fell upon deaf ears.

"Unfortunately, there isn't any God I would like to pray to. Am I the only one your tried to kill today or are you going after my brother Al to?"

"If he interferes, I will illuminate him," Scar glared at me as a warning "But Fullmetal Alchemist," He turned back to Edward. "You are the only one who is receiving judgment today. You alone."

"Then in that case I want your word. Promise me you won't hurt my brother!"

That would be enough for Edward. He could die right now in the streets as long as his brother was safe.

"I will keep that promise."

"No! Brother what are you thinking? Get up and run! RUN!"

Scar's arm was getting closer to Edward with each plea. It was NOT supposed to end like!

_Bang!_

The gun shot that brought a smile to my face and made my heart slow down to its normal beat. We all looked up to see Roy Mustang, with a very stern look, and many other familiar officers behind him with their own firearms ready.

"That's enough. You won't be killing anyone else today, Scar! I'm taking you into custody where you will answer to the murders of at least ten state alchemists." Mustang called.

Scar stood up straight and tall.

"Alchemists alter things from their natural form. Perverting them into something else. Something they insult God, the true creator of all things. As an agent of God I am here to pass out his judgment. If you interfere I will eliminate you as well..."

"Oh is that right?" Roy's face lit up with a smug grin as he handed his gun to Riza Hawkeye.

Oh no…It was raining. What in the world did he think he could do? Through smoke at him. I held myself back from laughing. Even though I knew we were in the clear, they did not.

"Colonel Mustang, Sir!" Riza called with shock on her face.

Bad move on saying his name though.

"Colonel Mustang? So, this is the Flame Alchemist? Volunteering yourself to recieve judgment? This is truly a wonderful day!" And with that, Scar raced toward Mustang with every intention to kill.

"So you know who I am and you still want to challenge me? Bad decision!"

With the snap of his fingers, a very pathetic cloud of smoke emerged and Mustang stared at it with so much disbelief that he did not notice how close Scar was to killing him. However, Riza the hero was fast enough to cast Mustang out of the way and send gun shots Scar's direction which he danced his way out of.

"What the hell did you do that for?" Mustang yelled.

"You know as well as I do that you are useless on rainy days. Please stay back!" She ordered.

"Hard to get a spark in the rain," I muttered.

"How fortunate! I will destroy you all for interfering with my mission right here and now!" Scar said with advancing on them once more.

"I'd like to see you try it!"

His frame was so massive. I mean, you could get a general idea of how large of a man Major Armstrong is, but let me tell you, not even close...

Armstrong's powerful fist came crashing down and Scar was lucky enough to dodge it.

"You have to be quick to avoid my fist. Not bad. Not bad at all." His voice held so much power.

"You said you were going to destroy us all. Well, why don't you start by defeating me! Let's see how well you fair against the Strong Arm Alchemist! Alex Louis Armstrong!" And very proud of himself.

"Yet another state alchemist? God is putting them in my path for me..."

By now, the officers who had stood behind Mustang were now by our sides. One of them was supporting Edward who seemed very dazed. I could not blame him either.

"Not backing down? Then I shall give you a demonstration! One that has been passed down the Armstrong line for generations!"

Throwing a very large beam into the air, Armstrong met it in midair, punching it. The beam turned into a large arrow which was directly aimed for Scar's face. How he dodged that too...I would never know.

"Who is he?" Edward finally spoke.

"Scar..." I whispered.

Havoc started at me and nodded before turning back to Edward.

"He's the same man who murdered Tucker and his daughter. 

Armstrong sent spikes toward Scar, but he destroyed those as well. With the amount of fighting that Armstrong was doing, the whole street was going to be demolished.

"Easy major we don't want to destroy the town!" Havoc called.

"Nonsense, in order to create we must destroy! It is the law of the universe!" Armstrong shouted while tearing off his shirt.

I know this was his signiture move and all, but I was impressed by his stature enough without the clothes ripping off. Now, he was kind of scary.

"Did he have to strip?" I agree with Riza while nodding.

"Non alchemists may fail to see the truth of that statement but we understand don't we, Scar?"

"So, he's an alchemist?" Mustang spoke.

"Of course. The stages of alchemy are construction, deconstruction and then reconstruction. This guy must stop at deconstruction." Edward pointed out.

I always thought that it was obvious that he was using alchemy. Then again, maybe that is one of the benefits of being the one watching it all on screen and being the all knowing observer.

"But, is he is an alchemist why is he only going after those with state certifications…"

The fight between Scar and Armstrong continued. Each of them very quick in their movements. But there was a moment when his swing was too wide and Scar took that moment to attack. However, once again Riza and her wonderful shot was everyone's saving grace. She was able to graze him and knock enough force for his dark glasses to fall revealing the red eyes.

"Red eyes and brown skin…of course he's an Ishbalan!"

Defeat was shining brightly in Scar's eyes. The troops marched forward taking this as a good time to bring him into to custody but today was not the day. Scar glared and raced toward the sewer, slamming his arm down, creating a large whole...disappearing...and on the loose…waiting to strike another time...

"So...is it over!"

Smiling, I looked over to See Maes Hughes peeking over the officers with his goofy smile. This guy could appear during the concentration camps and make you smile.

"You've been here the whole time!" Mustang shouted

"I thought it best to stay low...a person like me can't get dragged into this mess with a bunch of sudo humans!" Hughes turned to his men. "Don't just stand there! Get moving!"

"Yes sir!"

Edward looked up with a small gasp. He turned to Alphonse with worry written all over his face.

"Al, are you ok? Talk to me?"

His was well alright. Well enough to send a strong punch straight into Edward's jaw. I backed away and let the two brothers go at it. I had a big brother and every time him and I got into a fight, it was best to just let us have at it instead of someone else trying to calm the situation.

"Why didn't you run away like I told you too?"

And it went on from there. Turning away from them I stared up at the cloudy sky. Each rain drop caressed my face like feather kisses. Every time it rained, Jessica and I would always run out side and dance around with Derek...a transfer from New York. We loved to watch him dance and the rain gave such a wonderful effect...but that was not here. Here, I was standing in the rain lucky to be alive, and my mom and dad was nowhere close for me to hind. I was suddenly angry. When I made my wish, it was not to be put into danger. I wanted to see the world and help people I meet along the way…but wait…

Turning around back to the quraling brothers, it started to make sense. I wanted a journey that would change my life for the better…and I could help those who crossed my path, and I just so happened to cross the path of two people who needed the most help... A smile came to lips. This would be ok. I could do this then.

_Crash!_

"Oh great! And now my arm has come off because my brother is a big fat idiot!"

Edward sighed and looked down with a small laugh.

"We're really falling apart...aren't we brother?"

~.~.~.~.~

The following day the trains were up and running again. Since Edward's arm was busted he could not fix Alphonse and no one else knew how to bind his soul to the armor. So, we were going to Risembool. I had offered to stay behind but Alphonse would not hear of it. Actually, he was very excited for me to see their home town. Edward on the other hand, well, he had not spoken to me since after the incident with Scar. There were a lot of angry looks however. Alphonse told me not to worry about it and that "Brother would get over his fit soon," but I did not like it when people were angry with me. Especially when they were giving me the silent treatment! I would rather be yelled at.

"Does this giant thing have to be here with us?" Edward shouted while he sat next to Armstrong who was taking up most of the space.

"Without your arm, you're kinda helpless. And it's not like Serena here would be able to protect you. No offense," Hughes said with a smile.

"None taken!" I waved with a laugh.

The night before I was able to formally meet everyone. Of course Hughes talked the most. He threw pictures of his daughter in my face most of the night. I did not mind though. He was a man who had much devotion for his family and I admired that.

Not much longer we were waiving our goodbyes. Edward let out a sigh and stood to his feet.

"I'm going to check on Al..." He said while leaning down, appearing to be stretching.

"Don't think I've forgotten…you have some explaining to do..."

His hot breath tickled my ear and I shivered in response but also gave a small nod. He stood once more and left. My face was red and Armstrong stared at me with arms crossed and his brow raised.

"Something wrong?" He questioned.

Quickly shaking my head I turned my gaze to the quickly passing view. 'Actually…no.' I thought as a small smile formed. Like I said, this was going to be ok.

**So question, is it Ishbalan? Or Ishvalan? In Brotherhood is sounds like a bit of both haha. Well, this one was kind of long too haha but I enjoyed writing it! Please tell me what you think of it! I would love to hear comments, concerns, likes, dislikes, maybe things you would like to see? Haha anyways, I am very grateful for all the hits I'm getting! I work a double tomorrow so no chapter until Sunday! **

**~TwilightRoseAlchemist**


	6. Chapter Five: The Stone and my Teacher

**So many views but still only two reviews? Haha, anyway. I want to hear from you all!**

**Hiezen Uchiha: I am so happy that you like it! There are certain parts in the old one that I liked but a lot of it just seemed childish to me haha. I am hoping to capture more in this one than I did last time.**

**Alldumbamericanrejects27: I think so too…there were just times when it sounded like they were saying Ishvalan. Had to make sure lol. **

**I DO NOT OWN FULLMETAL ALCHEMIST**

**Chapter Five:**

**The stone and my Teacher**

I had never been on a train before. It was really exciting to me. I felt like a child sitting on their first plane ride and experiencing take off for the first time. I thought this was better than riding in a plane though. It was nice to see everything we passed instead of just the top of it. The sky was amazing to look at too, but it all started to look the same after a while.

Risembool was a good day and a half's ride. Edward took this time to throw alchemy books my way but he rarely said a word. Only when I asked a question and from the mood he was in, I did not want to ask any. I gave up on reading once Edward fell asleep around sun set. I figured now would be a good time for me to sleep as well.

Leaning my head against the window, I smiled up at the orange and yellows taking over the sky. The sunsets here were definitely better than those I saw back home. It was straight beauty. No tall buildings to block the way or telephone wires abstracting the view. It was peaceful…

~.~.~.~

The train horn awoke me with a start. I jumped to my feet and slammed my head on the luggage shelf. Edward chuckled while yawning. Oh sure. He gave me the silent treatment and he laughs at my pain. This is very fair. Glaring, I sat down with my arms crossed trying to ignore the throbbing in my head. 'Oh just you wait Elric...' I thought while a certain Doctor passed outside.

"Dr. Marco!"

Armstrong threw himself against the window, which led to Edward being smashed against it. My small chuckle turned into a laugh.

"Ha, Ha!"

I pointed a little at him and stuck my tongue out. Yeah it was childish, but hell that made it even more fun.

"Dr. Marco? Is that you? It's me! Alex Louis Armstrong from Central!"

Dr. Marco turned with fear in his eyes. And then he ran. I smiled slightly and stood to my feet. Grabbing Edward's arm I dragged him along.

"What the hell Serena!"

"Dr. Marco can help you with something on bioalchemy!" I said with a laugh while Armstrong shouted after us.

"That's what I was thinking," Edward replied taking himself from my grasp and then braking into a run beside me.

"I know," I muttered which he acknowledged with narrowed eyes.

So I knew that Dr. Marco lived somewhere in this village and the keyword there is…somewhere. We stopped and asked many people on the way if they knew where we could find him but no one knew anyone by the name Marco.

"Excuse me, but do you know anyone that looks like this man here?"

Armstrong pulled out a very accurate and detailed drawing of Dr. Marco.

"Wow Major that's a nice drawing..."Edward muttered.

"The skill of portraiture has been passed down the Armstrong line for generations." Armstrong answered with a small tear in his eye.

"Actually, that man looks like Dr. Marrow." Someone finally spoke.

"Yeah all of our doctors left when the war started and then Marrow came!"

"You see this bright red light and then everything is fine again."

Everyone had some kind of story to tell and it was more than enough. Edward looked up at Alphonse, who was being carried in a crate by Armstrong, and nodded. The red light was another clue for them. Another step to the Philosopher's Stone. From all the information we had gotten we were able to find Marco's home with ease.

"This is it," Edward said while knocking on the door.

_Bang!_

"AH!"

Marco stood before us with a gun held towards us. This journey was going to have a lot of surprises for me. Just yesterday I had never been on a train before and now I was having my first gun aimed at me. How exciting. When the gun shot rang out, my instinct was to hide behind Edward. I clutched to his arm, and he responded by holding his arm out like a shield. I looked up to see he was clearly afraid of the gun as well since Marco had just shot at him, but why was he...Ever since Scar Edward had refused to speak to me unless he had to and now he was..Protecting me…

"What do you want? Are you here to take me back?"

Marco was more afraid then we were. The gun shook due to his unsteady hand.

"Please Doctor, calm down," Armstrong spoke gently.

"I won't go back! Anything but that!" The gun was shaking more now.

"That's not it though, please..." I said. Maybe if someone he had not recognized as military trying to calm him would help.

"So, you're here to silence me then!"

Or perhaps not...

"No nothing like that!" Armstrong pressed.

"I won't be tricked by you!'

The Major let out an aggravated sigh. He had a lot of control for a man of his size and from all the persuading he had put in I think he had finally had enough. And then the crate he was holding, which Alphonse was still sitting in mind you, went flying straight for the doctor.

"For the last time please calm down!"

Well, at least he said please…

"Alphonse!"

~.~.~.~.~

"So, you changed your name and ran to the country side. If the rumors I heard are true: you took top secret materials with you."

"I couldn't take it anymore…dirtying my hands doing research on that thing..."

"And what thing is that?" Edward interrupted, but Marco continued on as if he had said nothing.

"It took so many lives. During the civil war so many innocent died because of what I'd done. I could spend my whole life trying and still never atone for the things I've done…but I had to do something so I came here to be a doctor…to save life instead of taking them."

My heart reached out to this man. My father spent some time in the military when I was a child. Every time he came home he would always make Aaron and I promise to never join. To this day, we still hear his nightmares from those days. So, I could understand this man. And I respected him…very much...

"Doctor, what is it exactly you were ordered to do research on?" Armstrong asked.

It was not like they did not already know the answer. They just wanted to hear him say it. To give them the proof they needed that this was a real moment.

"The Philosopher's Stone...the materials I took were research documents and the stone itself."

Edward stood to his feet.

"You mean you still have it? It's here?"

I could feel that he was ready to jump over the table and demand that Marco handed it over. But there was something holding him back...

Marco pulled a small vile from his coat. It was filled with blood red liquid. Edward stared at it with confusion in those golden eyes. The stone was supposed to be a hard object; not a liquid. The doctor pour the contents of the vile onto the table and it slowly took the form of a stone and hardened but only hard enough to be like jello. At least, that's what it looked like when Edward started to poke it like a child poking a dead snake with a stick.

"It's still imperfect...missing a key ingredient...there is no telling when it will be all used up and no longer work.." Marco whispered.

"Imperfect as it is it still showed plenty of power during the Ishbalan civil war right? It's just like the stone that false priest had in Lior...it was incomplete but it still amplyfied his alchemy considerably..."

A grin appeared on Edward's face. It was a smile that meant he was finally getting somewhere. The stone was so close to his grasp.

"If an incomplete stone can be so great than who says the real thing can't be created! Please Doctor Marco; I need access to your research!"

I looked down at my hands folded in my lap. He was very close to the truth of the stone. There was so much hope riding on this man. I could not help but feel sad…all of the hopeful times always turned out to be a dead end…

"Major who exactly is this boy?" Marco demanded. He could not believe that someone as small as Edward, no pun intended, would be wanting his research.

"This boy is a state alchemist."

"But you're only a child!"

Marco held the bridge of his nose and closed his eyes in agony. I recognized this look. He was reliving some horrible memories.

"After the war so many state alchemists got rid of their state certifications because they did not want to serve as human weapons anymore...and now a child-"

"You think I don't know what I've gotten myself into?" Edward interjected.

"I don't have a choice. There is no other way." He continued.

Marco, noticing how Edward was clutching the spot where his arm should have been, took time to study Alphonse. Standing to his feet and walking toward him, he placed a hand on Al's armor.

"I see you have committed the taboo..." Marco whispered. "Amazing…to transmute a living soul like this…perhaps someone as talented as you could produce a true Philosopher's Stone…But I CAN'T show you my research.."

Edward lurched forward a bit with sadness in his eyes. "Why not?" And for this first time since I had met him, he sounded like a child. Begging to know why he had been grounded.

"You must not seek after the stone." Marco was getting tired.

"Not even if it meant to restore their bodies! They're not going to use it for power!" I was begging now. Why could he not understand?

"Never! This is the Devil's research! If you chase after the stone you will go through hell!"

I jumped as Edward through his chair. He was angry. Very angry. That child I heard moments ago was gone and replaced once more by the boy who was forced to turn into a man.

"I've already been through hell!"

"Please…please just leave…"

So we did. We left without another word. Edward looked back at Marco's house once more and sighed with defeat. So close but it was gone within an instant. He could have taken it though. The imperfect stone was enough for him to study and Edward and Alphonse were smart enough to observe it and get the answers they needed. However, this town needed the Doctor. These people had no one else to rely on.

We sat at the train station waiting for the next one to take us to Risembool. Edward was smiling up at the sky and I could not imagine why. So I asked.

"We found out plenty about the stone today. Now, we'll just have to look for some other way to do it." He answered; standing to his feet once to train began to approach.

"What about you major? How do you feel about not reporting to Central about Marco?" Alphonse questioned.

"I met a simple Doctor today...no one else."

At least some of the people in this world did have their heads on right. Maybe there were some State alchemists that needed to be weeded out, but true people like Armstrong, and Mustang were the ones that everyone needed to be looking up to.

"Wait!"

Marco appeared to our side very much out of breath, but there was a smile on his face. Marching up to Edward, he handed him a small, folded up piece of paper.

"This is where my materials are...if you are certain about learning the truth in the end start looking here. Look closely…maybe you'll find the truth hidden within the truth..."

~.~.~.~.~.

We had finally made it. Risembool was a very beautiful place. I loved all the green and the crisp air. It reminded me so much of home. The only thing I liked better about this place was that it was sunny and still green. It rained all the time back home…

Winry and I sat on the patio with Alphonse while Edward was out visiting his mother's grave. Armstrong was punching logs to make firewood, yes punching…with his shirt ripped off mind you, and grandma Pinako was making dinner. Since Edward wanted a quick fix on his arm, Pinako decided it was best to start the following day so we could all have some time together before Winry disappeared for days making his new arm.

"You have no idea how nice it is to have another girl to talk to," Winry joked.

I laughed and nodded in agreement. It was nice. Winry was actually very sweet. She had her rough side here and there, but she did care for the Elric brothers very much.

"I'm gonna head in side and see if granny needs any help. Want to come?" She offered with a smile.

I shook my head and motioned to Alphonse which she seemed to understand. That was another thing I liked about Winry. I did not have to explain everything in detail to her. She just simply understood. Once she had retreated inside, Alphonse finally spoke.

"It's so peaceful here isn't it?"

"It sure is."

Silence. I wanted to know what he was thinking. Alphonse was still on speaking terms with me so I was not afraid to pester him a little, but beat me to it.

"When Scar attacked us, you said you would explain how you knew things…" He trailed off almost afraid. So I smiled and nodded in reassurance.

"You want me to explain?"

"Well, if that's ok…"

I laughed. He was so sweet. Edward spent time being angry with me and if it were him in this situation right now, he would have forced it out of me. Not ask for my permission.

"Ok, but keep an open mind here! I am not crazy ok!"

"I'm a walking suit of armor…I don't think I would find you insane." I could feel his smile.

"I'm not from this world Al," I started getting straight to the point. " I have an older brother named Aaron… a loving mother and brave father and a very crazy best friend…it was my seventeenth birthday a few days ago…I made a wish after seeing you and your brother on our television called Fullmetal Alchemist-"

"Wait, what?"

"Let me finish first," I stated with a laugh. "I wanted to have a wonderful journey where I could see the world and help people...when I had went to bed…I awoke in the alley where you and Ed found me...I know what you have been through. I know your mom died and that your father left when you were very young. I even know most of the things you are going to go through…that's why I attacked Scar. I knew he would destroy your brother's arm so I tried to change it, but it happened anyways..."

That seemed like enough talking on my part. Alphonse was bound to ask a lot of questions so I left the rest up to him.

"So, what is a television and explain us being a show as you said?"

My face fell. That was it. I just said I was from another world and all he wanted to know is what a television was.

"That's it?" I whispered.

"Well…yeah. Who is to say that there isn't another world like this one out there? After all brother and I have seen…I believe anything can be possible."

I wanted to cry and hug him like a teddy bear. That was a lot better than I thought this was going to go. Now, I just hoped that when I told Edward it would go just as well. Shaking my head, I laughed and began the very long and difficult explanation of the television and their hit series.

~.~.~.~.~.~

It had been a few days since we had arrived in Risembool. Edward was napping after getting his new arm. We would be leaving soon. I was lying on the cool grass reading my newest alchemy book when a dark shadow covered my sunlight. Looking up, I met Edward's emotionless stare. I said nothing and returned to my book.

"Glad you're keeping up with things," He finally said.

I looked back up to his gaze with a brow raised.

"Oh, are you finally talking to me?" I might have said it with a bit more sting than I intended.

"Al told me everything," he said completely ignoring my comment.

Looking down once more, I closed my book and sat up. I did not know what to say now. I was grateful that Alphonse had told him so I did not, but now I was readying myself for possibly the worst part.

"So, are you done being mad at me now that you know everything because I can't learn much from a silent teacher," I whispered. 

"You thought I was mad at you because you had a few secrets?"

His voice was very stern. I looked up at him with confused brown eyes only to see a harsh glare and his fists clenched tight. His new automail was shining brightly in the sun, and it was stronger. Reaching out with his human arm, he yanked me to my feet. It was then I realized that I was shorter than he was…and my height was something I thought I may have been able to use.

"Well, why else would you be?" I demanded finding my courage.

"You chose to be an idiot!" he yelled turning away.

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?"

"You shouldn't have attacked Scar! He could have killed you!"

I was thrown into a world of shock then. He was angry at me because I had attacked Scar? He was angry with me because I tried to help?

"I wanted to help-"

"I was reckless! I'm your teacher! I have to keep you safe!"

He turned to me once more with eyes filled with determination. And that is when it all made sense. Why he threw himself in Scar's path. Why he had shielded me from Marco's gun even though he was afraid himself. I was his apprentice. I smiled and stared at the ground feeling better.

"I'm sorry. I wanted to change what I knew was going to happen…I wanted you two to be safe, but you're right…it was reckless…" I looked up at him. I could tell he was surprised to see I had given in so easily.

"Forgive me, Teacher?" I asked with a grin.

Edward blinked a couple times before standing up straight and puffing his chest out.

"Ok. But don't expect to get off easily next time. You can start worrying about Al and I once you improve on your skills…Now!"

A devious glint shined in his eyes as he reached for my arm and pulled me away from the house a bit.

"In order to train the mind you have to train the body..." he began.

Oh no…

"If you want to become a great alchemist; we are going to have to train you how to fight!"

And with that he came charging at me. My eyes widened and I did what any normal person would have done…I ran.

"Noooooooo!"

**So I couldn't sleep last night because I kept picturing this one scene in my head over and over and over. I didn't want the same thing to happen tonight so I had! To write it haha. I hope you all enjoy it! How about some more reviews please! **** Fooooorrr mmmeeee? Haha**

**~TwilightRoseAlchemist**


	7. Chapter Six: Adjustments and Truth

**Thank you everyone so much for the reviews! It is a great accomplishment to see everyone enjoying it so much! It makes me giddy when I see all the reviews and e-mails I'm getting for those of you adding it their favorites. Thank you so much!**

**CallieBear: yes it did make me feel good haha. And thank you so much! I try hard to keep those two in character! Also, throwing Serena and Edward together would be weird yes, but to boring for me! Developed relationships are so much more fun to write!**

**CookieCrisp: I laughed a little while writing it haha**

**Oops: O_O! Forgive me! Haha it just seemed like the perfect spot to end lol**

**Bloodymidnight, Snow246, Odd'sgirl15, Lacy465: Thank you so much! Here is your update!**

**I DO NOT OWN FULLMETAL ALCHEMIST!...still don't…**

**Chapter Six:**

**Adjustments and Truth**

"Stop running Dammint!"

"Al, help me!" I whined while hiding behind a tree. The only response I got from him was laughter. Gee thanks. I will remember that.

I peeked to around the tree to see Edward crossing his arms looking annoyed. I gave him and weak smile which he rolled his eyes at but then grinned wildly. I suddenly found myself lifted off the ground by large metal arms.

"Al you traitor!" I yelled trying to wiggle out of his grasp which was a very hopeless attempt.

"Come on Serena. You're not going to learn anything by running," He replied with a small laugh.

Alphonse set me down in front of Edward, who smiling triumphantly and I just pouted. There was nowhere for me to run since Alphonse was holding me by each arm. They knew I would make a break for it.

"Now, get ready!" Edward said while readying himself once more.

"Don't hit me!" I shouted while I saw his arm coming for me.

I closed my eyes waiting for the blow…but it never came. Peeking one eye open, I looked up at my own arm which was blocking Edward's from striking. I smiled back at Alphonse who was the one who had moved my arm.

"You really thought I was going to hit you?" Edward laughed while setting his arm down.

I face lit up in embarrassment. Well, what else was I supposed to think? He was coming after me like he was ready to strike me down for crying out loud!

"Remember every movement Al is about to help you with. Now, stand like me…"

And it went on like this. I stepped every way Edward told me too, occasionally stumbling, and allowed Alphonse to move me like a small puppet. We did this for hours and my body was starting to feel sore. I was not going to be feeling good tomorrow.

Finally, Edward stepped back and let out a breath and Alphonse released me, which I took as a moment to fall to the ground. I smiled up and the orange sky and relished the cool grass. Edward blocked my view with a scolding look.

"Who said we were done?"

I sat up with my lips pursed.

"But I'm tired," I muttered before forcing myself to stand. I was surprised to find my legs able to stand since they felt like a bowl of jello. My eyes widened when Alphonse walked away and Edward was taking his ready position again.

"Um…Al?" I called.

"No. Try it without him," He must have seen the fear in my eyes since he laughed. "I'll take it slow." He reassured.

I nodded and copied his stance. Edward kept to his word. He moved very slowly for me. He was allowing me enough time to register his movements and to remember everything Alphonse had made me do in such situations. I started to smile and feel proud of myself for blocking. I even found enough pride in me to try and lay a few on him too.

"Let's pick up the pace then."

My pride faded. I liked it a lot better when we moved like a slug. He never hit me though. Every time he came close he just held it still and counted the times he could have. Edward swung his left arm at me, and I ducked finding a small opening. I smiled and went for the shot, but he quickly responded by ducking low and swinging his leg out which knocked me flat on my back.

"And that would forty-five times," Edward stated while offering me a hand.

I glared at it suspiciously. Was this another trick of his? Edward laughed and shook his head.

"It's ok. We're done for today."

The words I had been waiting to hear all day! I took his hand gratefully. There was no way I was going to be able to stand on my own. The Major's maniac laugh threw all hope I had of rest out the window as he stood before Edward and I with his shirt off and muscles bulging.

"How wonderful! Such dedication from a teacher and persistence of a pupil! It is beautiful!" He yelled with tears.

"Um, thanks?"

Armstrong through his fist in the air and his eyes filled with resolve.

"Perhaps I can help you as well! The art of fighting has been passed down the Armstrong line for generations!"

I did not even want to hear the rest. I ran for it again and Edward was right beside me. The Major was hot on trail though with his 'joyful' laughter ringing through the hills.

"The plan was to teach not crush her death!" Edward shouted while shoving me to the side.

Alphonse came to our rescue by catching both of the Major's fists. They were now having a battle of strength and Alphonse did not last long before he was tossed like a small fly. Both Edward and I nervously took our stances while Armstrong approached with a glee. In this moment, I think I was more afraid of him than I was of Scar…

~.~.~.~.~

Edward and I sat on the coach in the Rockbell home with dazed expressions. He was perfectly okay. Perhaps a little shocked that someone like the Major was happy to pick a fight, but he still held his own perfectly. Me on the other hand, I will probably be scarred of muscle head men for the rest of my life. I stood slowly, wincing at the pain in my legs. I was going to be sore for days since I was not used to so much exercise. I heard Edward laughing under his breath so I responded by throwing the nearest pillow at him.

"Oh that was mature!"

"Can it!"

Winry came waltzing in which interrupted the glaring contest Edward and I were having. She had a very happy grin on her face and it worried me a little. Smiles usually meant evil plans in this world.

"Soooo," she started. "Since you are new here and all…you probably need some help adjusting to the things of this place."

"Yeah…" I said slowly. Unsure of where she was going with this.

"I need to go pick up a few things in town. Come with me so I can take you shopping! You're going to need some new clothes!"

As much as I hated to admit it, she was right. Who knew how long I was going to be in this world. It would not hurt for me to adjust as she had put it. I gave her a small smile and thanked her.

"Besides, Edward still owes me for fixing his arm so this is gonna be great!"

"WHAT!"

~.~.~.~.~

I stared at myself in the mirror with my head tilted. I was very thankful that despite I was in a different time period, their fashion sense was pretty similar. The clothes I had arrived in needed to be tossed. They were a little torn in some place from the run in with Scar, and dark grass stains from all the running we did from the Major.

But I was content. Winry and I were able to find some dark jeans to replace my old ones and I would search for a long sleeve like the one I was wearing now whenever I made it home. It had a v-neck and the sleeves ended down at my wrists but all along the arm were small slit openings. I was starting to look like a native.

Stretching, I ran downstairs with a yawn only to be greeted with Edward's wining. He was ready to be on the road again. After the tip he got from Marco, he was desperate to be getting back to Central so we could search through the library.

"Sorry, we just need to get going. There is so much we need to do," Edward told Winry with a small frown.

Goodbyes had to be hard for all of them…

"Just remember to come home every now and again ok," Pinako told the brothers while letting out a small puff of smoke before turning to me.

"Now I don't exactly understand all of this about you being here, but you're welcome here anytime too."

I smiled and nodded. I was very thankful for everyone. Here I was, a total stranger to this world and everyone welcomed me in like I belonged. I had to thank Alphonse and Edward for that. Who knows what would have happened if they were not the ones to have found me.

We were back on the train in no time. I yawned and leaned against the window. It was the most I could do anyways since I was stuck by the Major and Alphonse and Edward were across from us. There was no way Alphonse would be able to fit next to him and since Edward sat by him on the way to Risembool it was "my turn," as Edward had put it.

"So, what are we doing in Central again?" I asked with tired eyes.

"We're going to Central Library. The first branch. That's where Marco has all of his research pertaining to the stone," Alphonse answered since Edward was already fast asleep.

I nodded and dozed off. More reading…yay…

~.~.~.~.~

"Ah! Doctor Marco's research! It's all gone!"

Most of the Library was in ashes. People who passed us in the street told us it was recently burnt down. Still an unknown cause. I stared at it and the laughed nervously.

"Oh yeah…I remember this..."

"What do you mean 'Oh yeah?' If you knew why didn't you tell us?" Edward shouted slightly annoyed.

"I forgot! I'm not exactly God here with the all seeing eye!" I retaliated.

Edward sighed and marched into the damaged building. He was looking for something that might have made the fire. But there was nothing. Every book was burnt to a crisp.

"Major Armstrong, Sir!" I new voice said.

We turned to see two soldiers. I smiled in recognition. It was Denny Brosh and Maria Ross. These two were great in the series.

"You are requested back at Central command and we will be guarding Elric, Sir!" Ross stated with a strong salute still in place.

"What? Just when I thought I'm home free they give me more body guards! Geez!" Edward whined.

I let out an exasperated sigh when we were once again piled into a car. I was bored. If only we could have stayed in Risembool a little while longer. Maybe because it reminded me so much of my own home town.

"Maybe not all hope is lost. There was a lady that used to work at that branch, Sheska, and maybe she can help."

I smiled and lightly tapped Edward with my elbow. I nodded at him and he gave me a smile. It became my little way of telling him something good was about to happen.

"Well let's go then!" He said.

"I just wanted to ask, why are you in that suit of armor?" Ross asked staring at Alphonse.

The three of us grew nervous and laughed a little.

"A hobby!" Both Edward and Alphonse echoed.

The two soldiers stared at each other in shock and began to whisper to one another. A hobby? Out of all the excuses they could have come up with…they said hobby.

"What a beautiful day!" I said suddenly pointing outside.

"Yeah it's wonderful!" Alphonse piped in.

~.~.~.~

Sheska was more of a bookworm in person. She was as sweet as can be do not get me wrong, but she was someone who would have been greatly picked on through my high school. I loved her when I saw her on screen. Because of her photographic memory she had been able to rewrite, word for word, every single one of Marco's research books, but now that I was staring at the towers of notes…I was annoyed.

I glared at the sheets of paper in front of me with my arms crossed. I turned to Edward with a pout as he sat down next to me and handed me a notebook to write down any notes. Maybe if I gave him the saddest look I could conjure up, and stare at him long enough he would let me off the hook.

"Don't even try it," he muttered digging his nose into the first stack.

So, I went to plan B. Trying the same thing Alphonse. No such luck there either…I did not understand why they wanted me to read any of this. Sure, I had some training for the couple weeks I had been here but not enough to decode Marco's notes. Especially since the masters next to me were going to have a hard time with it.

"You know I could just tell you what it said..." I muttered.

Edward turned to me and thought for a moment before he shook his head.

"No. I want to see for myself. Besides, there could be more to it."

Well, so much for that. I guess there was no point in trying to make things easier. So, I grabbed on book and went to reading. But it was not long before all of us had given up and were lying on the table defeated.

"Why did Marco's research have to be so damn hard?"

"Again! I could just tell you!" I shouted sitting up.

"For the last time no!"

The door opened and in walked Sheska with a sweet smile. She gave a small bow to Edward.

"I just wanted to thank you for the payment you gave me. It was more than enough money to move my mother into a better hospital," she said.

"Hey it was nothing. Your amazing memory really helped us out a lot-"

"Hey! The Major told me you were back and I told you both to stop by once you did too!" Hughes stated while marching in.

I sunk in my chair with a sigh of relief. I reminded myself to thank them for the break later.

"Something urgent came up, sorry" Edward laughed.

"It's just as well. We've had a lot of cases to work on. And to make things worse the first branch had to burn down and all of criminal cases were there. It's been a pain working without them."

Edward, Alphonse and I grinned and turned our gaze to Sheska. She stepped back suddenly.

"Well, I read all of the criminal cases and remember it very well," Sheska said quietly.

Hughes smiled and grabbed her.

"You're hired! And don't you worry my department pays well," he laughed while proceeding to drag her out the room.

"Thank you so much!" She shouted with a joyful smile.

"She won't be thanking you later," I laughed while waving good-bye.

"Good determination gets you anywhere, eh? Smooth little brother. Very smooth," Edward quoted his brother while leaning back in his seat.

"I think of it every time I look at someone else I know." Alphonse replied gazing at his older brother.

"Well it better be true," I wined gazing down at the papers in front of us.

"Yeah, or you're going to have to think of a new motivational speech!"

And with that we were back to work. Every now and again one of us sprung to our feet, completely aggravated by not understanding any of the encryptions.

"I can't take it anymore!" I shouted digging my hands in my hair.

"Sit your ass down we're almost done!" Edward responded for the fourth time.

And not much longer Edward was on his feet yelling the same thing.

"Sit your ass down!" I mocked trying to make my voice match his.

This is what the next five days consisted of. Yelling, sleeping, more yelling and some food here and there. I was beginning to wonder what I had gotten myself into.

"The hell with it!" Edward finally stated with shoving his fist to the ground.

We had all moved from the table to random places across the room. I was perched on the window sill, Edward on the floor, and Alphonse near the door. Maria and Denny ran in because of Edward's outburst.

"Just because you can't crack it doesn't mean you need to throw a tantrum," Ross scolded.

"But we did crack it…" Alphonse whispered sadly.

I sighed and tossed my book to the side. I tried to warn them that they would not like the answers they found but neither of them wanted to believe me.

"You knew this didn't you?" Edward asked me sadly.

I nodded slowly and stared out the window.

"It is the devil's work…the final ingredient to the stone is human life…"

**This was more of a filler chapter than anything. Either way, hope you enjoyed it! Thank you so much for the reviews again! Keep em coming! Lol!**

**~TwilightRoseAlchemist**


	8. Chapter Seven: Let me Help

**Do you have any idea how awesome it was for to get three reviews and hits on my last chapter like five minutes after I posted it? Yeah, I threw a little party inside lol. Enjoy the next chapter!**

**And Cookie Crisp…you are very right! Ed angst is essential in this chapter for me haha**

**Chapter Seven:**

**Let me Help**

"_It is the devil's work…the final ingredient to the stone is…human life…"_

~.~.~.~.~

It was really quite. The only sound emitted was the fan above that squeaked with every rotation. No one had dared say a word after Edward's outburst so Ross and Brosh left us alone. There was nothing more they could do.

Edward had taken my spot by the window, lying down so his back was facing us. It was strange for the brothers to be in the saddened state they were in. I knew I was going to see it eventually, but after the time we spent laughing….I had forgotten the pain that was on its way.

"So, that's it then?" I finally spoke.

Neither of them flinched. I was hoping to get a rise out of one of them. I sighed and leaned back, turning my gaze back to the fan. Someone should really think about fixing that…

"I don't want to get my body back if it means other people have to die," Alphonse said.

I smiled at him gently. They had been through so much already. It meant the world to Alphonse too get his body back one day. He wanted to feel the rain or when someone embraced him, but if it meant that other people had to die in the process…it just was not worth it.

"That doesn't mean you have to give up. If we keep looking maybe we can find another wa-

"There is no other way!" Edward shouted suddenly and a book went flying through the room.

Both Alphonse and I stayed silent.

"The Philosopher's Stone was the only chance we had at getting Al back to normal again! But now..."

He trailed off and let out heavy breaths. It was painful to see this much torment in his eyes but there was something else there also. Failure.

"Ed…" I started.

But he shrugged me off and left. The door shut with a slam and Edward was gone. I jumped slightly from the slamming door and stared down at my hands which were resting in my lap.

"Do you really believe there is another way Serena?" Alphonse asked suddenly. "You have to know right?" He continued.

My heart fell. There was so much hope in his voice. I could see a little boy staring up at me with big eyes. I felt like a mother having to explain to their child that their dog had died.

"Sorry….but I don't know for sure…" I whispered.

It was truth. I knew that there was a chance things could go where they wanted it, but I did not know how. How were they going to get their bodies back? My 'all seeing eye' as I began to call it had not seen that far.

I looked over to Marco's notes once more but with a glare this time. What a great help he had been after all. It would have been a lot easier for Marco to just come out with it. "Hey you have to kill people, and I mean A LOT, of people to make a stone." It would not have been that hard!

But, that is when my new analytical mind that Edward had been helping with started to kick in. There had to be more to this. We spent days looking through Marco's research only to find that the stone needed human life, but what else? We had stopped once that truth became known…truth…

"The truth hidden within the truth…" I said smiling to my feet.

Alphonse looked up at me and I could only guess he was confused. I did not have to see his face to know that much.

"We found the truth but what about-"

"The truth behind it." Alphonse finished standing also.

"I'm gonna go find Ed! You start reading. You'll be able to figure this stuff out better than I can," I laughed while running out.

Then again…maybe I should have been the one to stay behind. After all, I did not know this town very well. I walked out to see Ross sitting in the lounge. I had forgotten that she was here to watch over Edward.

"Edward is outside if you are looking for him. I sent Bosh to watch over him so he wouldn't wander too far." She said with a smile.

I thanked her and made my way for the door. This was going to be a lot easier than I thought. I stopped once Edward came to my view. He was staring off at the sky with so much hate and despair. I thought about leaving him alone a bit longer so he could have to collect his thoughts but...

"Oh, hey Serena! How are you?" Bosh said loudly.

I flinched and made a mental note to possibly smack him around a bit later. Edward turned his gaze toward me slowly. The hate vanishing from his eyes but everything else remained the same. Well, there was no way I could turn back now. I turned to Bosh and gave him a small smile and slowly walked forward once more. I sat next to Edward on the cold bench and looked up at the sky. It seemed empty tonight.

Neither of us said a word. The silence was comfortable for the moment. Besides, it gave me enough time to think of something to say.

"You're not gonna give now…right?" I asked slowly.

"I don't know what else we could possibly do. I can't think of any other way to get Al his body back," Edward whispered.

I turned and looked at him. The lights gave off a pale glow on his skin and his amber eyes did seem to be gold. I smiled slightly and placed a hand on his shoulder.

"You're not looking hard enough Ed." I stated.

He only sighed and stretched his automail arm into the sky. To me, it seemed like he was reaching for something that might magically appear and help.

"I've been looking hard for years…"

I frowned and stood to my feet. I did not like this side of Edward. I liked it when he was determined and ready to take on the world when it came to getting his brother back to normal. That resolve is what makes Edward…well…Ed.

"Ed, come on. There has to be more. I'll reread a few things and maybe-

"Serena, I know what you're trying to do…but don't. No offense but I don't think you can see anymore than we have."

That actually kind of stung a bit. I know I was not as smart as he and his brother were about all of this but I had put just as much of an effort into it. I crossed my arms and stared up at the sky. My eyes watered a little bit. It was not because I was sad. My eyes watered whenever I was angry and I hated it with a passion.

"Look, I know I'm not the best alchemist yet but I am gonna try. I don't care if things seem hopeless," I stared, turning my watered eyes back to Edward.

He looked at me and leaned back a little surprised.

"Let me help you, Ed. Let me at least do that much. That is the real truth there…let me help…"

He stared at me long and hard. It was making me nervous really. I was starting to wish I had just walked away instead of letting everything slide on out. But then he smiled.

"I didn't want you to cry you know," he said softly.

"I'm not crying…" I muttered turning away from. Curse the angry tears.

Edward shifted in his spot next to me and rested his chin within his palm

"The truth…that is the real truth" he whispered while repeating some of my words.

"What is it?" I asked him tilting my head.

"Remember what Doctor Marco said back at the train station?"

"Yeah…" I answered knowing where he was going.

"I didn't have a clue what he was talking about then, but now, it's the same with his alchemical notes. What you can see on the surface is only a portion of the truth. There is still more to find here!"

He grabbed my arm and drug me back inside. I frowned a little. I was going to say that! But, it was okay. Edward was smiling again. There was the determination so many people enjoyed back in his eyes again. Besides, Edward would have figured the truth out without me anyways. No point in trying to steal his thunder there.

Maybe I was not the greatest alchemist…but I could do this much…for now…

Next thing I knew we were sitting in that forsaken room I had been trapped in for days again. But now Major Armstrong, who had appeared dramatically crying over the Philosopher's stone, was showing us a large map of Central. Maria Ross and Bosh were there as well listening in on everything.

"Currently, there are four operation alchemy laboratories in Central that have connections to the government. We can narrow it down even more. Marco worked in the third laboratory. We should start with that one," Armstrong informed while laying one of his large fingers on the map where the third laboratory was.

"Al and I have been to all the laboratories in the city. None of them were doing any remarkable research," Edward said while looking over every inch of the map until something had finally caught his eyes.

"Here! What is this building used for," He asked.

"It was designed for the fifth laboratory," Ross started. "But it isn't in use. It was confirmed as not structurally sound so it became off limits."

Edward smiled and nodded.

"It's there."

"How can you be so sure?" Bosh questioned.

"There is a prison next door," Edward began to explain while pointing to the spot on the map.

"Soooo?"

"What was the main ingredient for a Philosopher's Stone?" I interjected while gazing at the soldiers. They shivered at the thought.

"There are plenty of condemned convicts in the prison. Officially they would be filed as executed." Edward continued for me.

"They're using prisoners as material…" Ross whispered as he face turned a little green.

"You're pretty comfortable talking about this Ed," I said with a small nudge while the officers stared at him a little scared.

"Don't look at me like that. I don't like talking about this any more than you."

"Prisoners from other jurisdictions could be used to. I wonder if the government is involved in any of this." Alphonse stated with a little worry.

"Why do I have the feeling we are getting drug into something dangerous?"

"That's why we wanted you to pretend like you didn't hear anything!" Alphonse scolded the two soldiers.

Armstrong folded up the map and stood to his feet. Taking the map with him he made his way to the door with heavy steps.

"This has the potential to become a political nightmare. I'll look into what we talked about tonight." He told the three of us before turning his gaze to his subordinates. "In the mean officers speak of this to no one." They responded with a salute.

"As for you Elric brothers behave yourselves! I know you too boys! You were thinking about sneaking into this building and taking a look around? Admit it!"

The Major was practically towering over them. The brothers cowered back and even went as far as using me for their shield.

"We weren't! We promise!" Both of them shouted.

Yeah….sure they were not….

Once they had left Edward turned me around to face him with all seriousness.

"You most likely know what we are up to. I need you to stay behind."

I thought he might have been kidding at first. But no, he was very serious. I thought about agreeing and staying back. There was nothing more I could do for them. Then I started to really think about it. If I stayed behind, Bosh and Ross would come check on us only to find that the Elrics were gone. This led to Major Armstrong finding out which led to my crushing death. I as more likely to survive at laboratory five.

I shared this little epiphany I had with the brothers and after a while they both agree. If I was not killed by the Major's muscles than they would have made me lead the way and their hopes of scoping out the lab might have been cut short…cut…huh…

I pulled on my dark blue coat with a shiver. It was not because I was cold either. I was nervous actually. Things were starting to get more interesting. Alphonse was the first to climb down the window and I was ordered to go second just in case "klutz decides to fall," as Edward had so nicely put it. I had started to climb out when Edward stopped me by grabbing my hand. Part of me was already hanging out the window so I thought now was not the time for any comments. I had a lot of concentration to do with this climbing.

He looked away from me with his lips pursed. Whatever he had on his mind was not easy for him apparently. I saw this look on Aaron whenever he admitted he was wrong or was apologizing because mom forced him too.

"I just wanted to…"

But the rest was unclear to me. He was saying it too quietly.

"I'm sorry what?" I asked trying to keep my balance and wishing he would hurry up so I could get down.

Edward turned to me finally with courage.

"Thank you," he said softly…and a small smile formed before he let me go and urged me down the rope…

**This one was meant to be kinda short. This one just leads up to the events at laboratory five and I am already working on that chapter. I think it is going to be pretty long so I made this part into its own separate chapter. Two chapters in one day though! I feel accomplished…don't be surprised if you see the next one up at midnight or so haha. Thank you again for the reviews. It means a lot to me! And I'm sure other writers who are reading this understand that **

**~TwilightRoseAlchemist**


	9. Chapter Eight: Lab Five

**So I have been super sick all day….it sucks haha. But, I have been working on this chapter on and off all day so I hope you all like it. Thank you so much for the reviews again! **

**Chapter Eight:**

**Lab Five**

"Al, there is no way you're going to fit through that," I said while staring up at an air vent.

Edward stood beside me and nodded in agreement. The plan was simple. Edward would climb through the air vent to get inside and take a look around for what they needed. Alphonse was to stay behind and I was to stay with him. However, that part of the plan did not last long.

"I didn't ask to be this big…"

"I still they you should stay here," Edward muttered while Alphonse gave me a boost to the air vent.

"And I think you should grow some but that hasn't happened either," I joked and quickly climbed inside.

"I AM NOT SHORT!"

"Keep it down brother…" Alphonse scolded while hoisting Edward up.

Crawling through a ventilation shaft was something I never thought I would do. This was something you only saw agents do in the spy movies. I was just waiting for Edward to pull out some gizmo.

"Well, I guess it is a good thing I'm so small or I couldn't have made it through here," Edward started.

I stopped crawling and waited for his outburst.

"I just called myself a pipsqueak!" He finally cried.

"Aw, come Ed! At least you have big heart." I laughed while continuing onward.

"Oh shut up. Let's go down here."

Edward jumped down first to make sure it was safe before he waved me down. I never had a huge problem with heights but I hated the feeling of falling. I glared down at the ground bellow and slowly maneuvered myself for the jump. Edward gazed up at me with his brow raised and then shook his head before he held both arms up.

"Come on! Hurry up!"

And for a moment I thought he was just being sweet. I jumped down, which he easily helped with and we were on our way once more.

"Lights are on…this place is defiantly being used." Edward said with a triumphant smile.

We continued onward through the dimly lit halls for a while before finding one room that was very well lit. It seemed like the best place to look at first. There was a large transmutation circle inscribed on the ground and a few blood splatters that made my stomach spin. This was the right place.

"What's all this? I bet this is what they use to transmute a Philosopher's Stone."

His face was lit up with the joy of discovery. After the lost hope of never getting their hands on the stone, they were finding something worthwhile.

"Yes."

The answer came from across the room and it was not Alphonse or anyone else we could have known. There was a tall figure in the dark and it was slowly making its way toward us.

"I don't know who you are kid but you sure figured out a lot just by looking at a transmutation circle…" He finished while finally coming into the light.

He was in a suit of armor and carrying a sharp katana at his side. Glowing red eyes, which matched the fabric covering his lower face, were peering at us. I bit my lip and backed away slightly.

"Ooooh yeaaah..." I whispered which earned Edward's glare.

"Your 'oh yeahs' are starting to get late." He scolded before turning back to the new comer. "I'm just good like that. Who are you pal?"

"I am supposed to be guarding this place from curious brats like you, but for the moments let's just say my name is number forty-eight and believe me I'm not your pal. My orders are to dispose of anyone who doesn't belong here. Try not to take it personal." Forty-eight informed while holding his sword out; ready to strike.

"All right I won't." Edward grinned.

He clapped his hands together and created his automail into his own weapon.

"As long as you don't take it personal when I kick your ass!"

It was a great plan. Sure, lets insult the guy who was about to try and cut our heads off. I looked out a nearby window as my concern for Alphonse started to arise. By now, he was already tossing around Berry the Chopper…and falling prey to the idea that he was nothing but a created being with artificial feelings. 'He's going to be okay.' I thought while reminding myself of the task at hand. There was a very talented serial killer in front of us and I only had some training up my sleeves. I looked over at Edward and he gave me a reassuring smile.

"Try and stay back and leave the rest to me," He whispered.

"Oh, so you're an alchemist?" And with one quick motion, Forty-eight, or Slicer as I knew him, was before us. "Then let's see what you've got." And he swung his blade which Edward easily blocked.

"A prosthetic arm. No matter. My sword can pierce through steel just as well as flesh."

Edward ducked from Slicer's blow and let out a swift kick. The hollow echo rang out through the whole room.

"My, my. What's this?" He smiled. "I'm gonna go out on a limb here and say you're hollow inside?"

"You're very perceptive." Slicer answered with a little shock in his tone.

"I can tell by the sound. I spar against someone like you all the time."

"There's other people like me out there too…that's surprising."

"Yeah. It makes me sick that someone got the same idea to bind a disembodied soul to a suit of armor."

Forty-eight lowered his sword and let out a low chuckle. There was a moment of silence in the room and neither of us moved. We were waiting for one of us to take the first strike.

"Perhaps I should reintroduce myself then. Forty-eight was the number they gave me when I was on death row; Back when I still had a living body. I was better known as Slicer then. I was a mass murder you see."

Why the guy felt like he needed to tell us his life story I do not know. I thought introductions just meant a name, but I guess this was okay too. It gave me enough time to survey the area for anything that might help later…and low and behold a small pile of rubble behind Slicer would do just fine. It would come in handy very soon.

"Tell me something then. Are they using condemned prisoners like you make Philosopher's Stone here?" Edward asked lowering his guard but only a little.

"That I can't tell you. It isn't my area. They simply recognized my skills, gave me this body, and made me a guard dog."

I started to feel bad for the guy.

"Interesting. I'm sure they gave you a seal too; to serve as a medium between soul and armor."

Slicer nodded and carefully removed the fabric covering his helmet and pulled the metal away revealing the crimson blood seal.

"This is it right here. If you destroy this the fight is over."

Edward turned his head slightly and narrowed his eyes.

"That's awfully considerate of you to show me your weak spot."

"I like to give myself a challenge here and there."

Something did not feel right to me. I was forgetting something and it was one of those thoughts that drive you mad until you remember it.

"If you're in such a giving mood why don't you just let us go?" Edward asked with a shrug.

"Nice try, but what kind of mass murder lets his prey get away…now…" Then Slicer raised his blade and came at us again.

Edward shoved me to the side and ordered me to stay back. Normally, I might had disobeyed but this was not a time I was willing to risk it. I did not want to mess up anything that could hurt either of us.

Both of them were moving so fast it was hard to keep track of everything. There was clanging from their weapons touching, flips and turns, and more clanging. It was truly amazing how Edward moved. He was so young…but my heart sped up and worry filled his eyes and he gazed at his arm. It was starting to collapse…

'Because of the missing screw!' I panicked. Out of all things I could have said to Winry while I was there was for to remember that damned screw!

Edward had picked up the pace. He was trying to end the battle quick before his arm gave out completely. But moving faster meant that he would get tired faster and Slicer was still moving and blocking each attack like he was taking a slow walk through a park. With one slice, blood pour out of Edward's left shoulder.

"Ed!" I called but he only shouted at me to stay away.

More and more blood was slowly forming all over Edward's body and I flinched every time. This was not the kind of situation I wanted to be in. Who in the world wanted to be the helpless one? Edward flipped back from another swing but stumbled on his landing and fell.

"What a cute little monkey you are." Slicer commented.

"WHO ARE YOU CALLING LITTLE?"

Slicer laughed and spoke of how wonderful it was that he had 'prey' to give him such a challenge and how Berry was outside taking care of Alphonse. It was nothing to Edward though. He had complete faith that his brother was more than okay.

Now that Slicer had cleared away from the rubble I had found moments before, I made my way and drew an array as fast as my skills would let me, which was a lot better from when I had done so with Scar. The rubble rose and out came a sword fit for me. So I had not practiced with an actual weapon, but I knew enough to help out.

Slicer was about to make his next strike.

"You forgot he didn't come alone!" I shouted before and raced toward him.

He was very fast. I remembered how Edward had started to pick up his pace with me but it was nothing compared to how slicer was. It was terrifying.

"You idiot!" Edward yelled while jumping into the air and flying by with Slicer's helmet falling to the ground and his armor fell with a loud crash.

"Hey you wouldn't have done that if I didn't do something." I argued.

Edward marched up and took the sword away from me with a glare before heading straight for Slicer's head. With a clap of his hands his automail returned to normal.

"Why are you stopping? You still haven't destroyed the blood seal I so kindly pointed out."

"There is still something I need to ask you." Edward stated now holding Slicer into the air.

"The Philosopher's stone?"

_Clank…_

My ears twitched slightly and I looked both to my right and left but nothing was there. Edward and Slicer continued their own conversation but something in my gut was making me nervous. I had the feeling that someone was watching us. The feeling grew stronger as I felt that presence behind me…getting closer like a slow horror film.

"Ed…" I whispered too afraid to turn around.

"I'm not beaten yet."

Those words sent my mind into frenzy. There was his brother! Slicer had a younger brother whose soul was attached to the rest of the armor.

"Ed there-

But I never finished. The sharp pain at my side was more agonizing than I ever imagined it would. Whenever you saw someone die on film by a gunshot or even from a sword fight you think "that must have hurt." But it was more excruciating than that. I barely heard Edward call for me, but I felt him race past and block the next blows with his arm, but his weapon was gone and this brother was not going to give him time to transmute one.

"That's a dirty trick," Edward hissed.

I looked up to see him kneeling next to me now. He was bleeding from his side now. Most likely caused by the younger slicer. I gripped my side and forced myself to stand. What I had was nothing compared to what Edward was suffering from and now was not the time to starting acting like a defeated child. This is what I had wished for and this is what I had to deal with. Edward stood beside me and nudged him with my elbow and gave a small smile. Something good was coming. He grinned but never faced me. It was our unspoken communication.

Next thing I knew the younger brother was racing for us and we both split. He was bound to go after one of us and that would leave the other time to strike, but if this would turn out right….

Edward was backed into a pillar with Slicer charging at him and his blade was poised to kill. But resolve filled Edward's eyes as he clapped his hands, dodged the blade by a hair and placed both hands on Slicer.

"To beat a serial killer…I guess I have to act like one."

And with that Slicer split in half and fell to the ground finally defeated. Rushing to Edward's side, I tried to observe each wound.

"You okay?" He asked weakly.

"What do you mean am I okay? Look at you first" I replied ripping off a portion of my jeans and rapping it around one of Edward's many wounds.

"How could you? You brat!" The younger one shouted and continued to rant.

Edward and shoved ourselves against the pillar; afraid that one of them would attack once more.

"Shut up and rust!" Edward yelled with a sigh.

"As much as I hate to admit it…we've lost…" the eldest said.

Edward leaned forward with his lips pursed and slowly poked the lower half of the armor with his foot.

"There isn't a third brother is there?"

"No…" Both Slicer's and I echoed.

"Come on boy hurry up and destroy us" The eldest demanded.

Edward stared at them both long and hard before he leaned back to take in some well deserved air. He shook his head and closed his eyes.

"I'm not a murder," he whispered.

"Oh please with bodies like these are we really even people?

"If I believed that than I would be saying my own brother wasn't a person and I just can't do that…" Edward replied with a far look in his eyes.

"How ironic. When we had our bodies we were called monsters and never considered human for the things we did, but now for the first time you call us people when we are scraps of metal! For that boy I will give you a parting gift. I will tell you who made the Philosopher's stone and ordered us to guard this place."

The clanking sound of heels reached my ears and I looked up in time only to witness the oldest Slicer being chopped into pieces by long, extended knives.

"My, that was a close call."

"Oh no…" I whispered to myself trying to stand once more and pulling Edward along with me.

He must have sense my urgency because he took his place before me and prepared himself.

"Number forty-eight, you should know better than to talk about things that don't concern you." The shadow spoke.

The darkness stepped forward to reveal a very beautiful woman. She wore a tight fitting dress that barely covered her breasts and the symbol of the arborous stood out on her chest where long hair cascaded by it.

"Well, well would you look at that! What is the Fullmetal pipsqueak doing here?" Asked a new voice who made an appearance behind the woman I knew as Lust.

The new comer had a large, smug grin spread across his face, and his green hair spiked out uncontrollably….Envy….

"Such a troublesome boy…"Lust spoke. "How did you find out about this place?"

Envy picked up Slicer's blade and repeatedly stabbed the younger brother's seal. His painful breaths made tears fill my eyes. No matter the pain he had cause, no one deserved such a thing. I clutched onto Edward's arm and he responded by pulling me further behind me.

"Quit your pathetic blubbering you idiot! You were trying to kill one of our most important sacrifices. Do you understand me?" Envy shouted while continuing to stab Slicer's blood seal. "You could have messed up the entire plan! What would we have done then? Huh?"

Once Slicer had finally died, Envy smiled viciously and held the sword behind his head while taking slow steps toward us. Lust took a spot next to him.

"Tell me who you people are. What plan are you talking about? What do you mean when you say important sacrifice?" Edward demined.

"They're not people, Ed." I whispered which earned Lust and Envy's stares as if they had just noticed my presence.

Envy stared at me for a while and it made me uncomfortable. His eyes narrowed almost like he was trying to see through me. A slow smile started to take form.

"Well you're a different kind of energy aren't you." He finally said and I stepped back…did he know? "Oh it looks like the pipsqueak is ready to go. I think I made it angry!" He joked commenting on Edward's angered expression and ragged breaths.

"Don't call me pipsqueak again."

"Then what would you prefer? Eh, pipsqueak?"

Edward let out a low growl and lifted his leg to swing a kick to his face, but Envy easily moved back.

"Whoa now. There is no need to fight here. Someone might get hurt you know?" Envy laughed.

Edward clapped his hands and the ring of an array forming echoed in my ears.

"This is a fight that you started! So come on!"

_POP!_

Edward's face filled with shock as his automail shoulder caved in; rendering his arm useless.

"Technical difficulties?" Lust asked with a brow raised.

"Oh lucky me." Envy danced up to Edward, grabbing his braid and sending a swift knee to his stomach.

"You're lucky your arms broken. If not for that you wouldn't be getting off so easy." And with that he dropped Edward to the ground. I had enough.

I stepped in front of Edward with the fiercest eyes I could conjure up. When I was younger, my brother had taken and protected me from bullies when I was a small child. Now, here in this world Edward and Alphonse were taking that position in dangerous encounters. Frankly, it was getting old. So many times the brothers stepped up to protect those in need. It was their turn for a little brake.

"Oh, the girl has guts." Envy laughed.

I only grinned and quickly drew a circle which led to ice spike flying his way. Envy's eyes lit up and he laughed at every spike he dodged.

"You are a little different aren't you?" Lust spoke with curiosity.

It was a random comment and it made no sense to me. Why did they keep thinking that?

"You have no idea!" I yelled before slamming my hands down again….but I never felt the ground.

My vision was blurring. Letting my head fall I stared at my hands, but they were not there. At least not like they should be. Though I could see the outline and a very light color on my skin tone, I could also see the ground straight through my hands and that transparent look was spreading up my arms.

"It's just my lucky day!"

I looked up with my clouded eyes to see Envy's face above me. My head spun as he kicked me to the ground. I was tired….but why? What was going on?

"Listen to me well: Always remember we allowed you to live." Lust spoke slowly.

"We can't haven them poking around here again. It's too dangerous. It'll have to go. Blow it up."

I looked over to Edward to see him already losing consciousness. He had lost too much blood and Envy's blow was all he had left to take. Staring up the ceiling, my vision started to blur again and my body felt lighter than air. For a moment, I thought I saw Aaron peering over me, but he was quickly taken over with Envy.

"We'll have to tell father about this one..."

That was it. The rest was darkness.

~.~.~.~.~

White….satin white. And yellow…All I could make out were colors.

"You're awake!"

"Winry?" I asked quietly.

The yellow blob started to take form and in came Winry's smile. Looking around some more I began to recognize the setting. This room was very similar to the hospital room I was in only a month ago. It was just a bit larger. I looked over and noticed Edward in the bed next to mine with a sheepish grin.

"Here to fix his arm?" I asked trying to get out a laugh.

She nodded nervously and pulled her hair back. By now Winry had thought of the missing screw but had said nothing about it. Gazing at all of Edward's bandages everything had started to replay itself…my hands...my eyes winded and I sat up quickly to observe my arms. They were there. Normal as ever. I let out a sigh and leaned back. Winry stared at me with her brow raised and I just smiled and shrugged.

"What happened to this fifth laboratory?" Edward asked. It was then I noticed Ross and Bosh standing beside his bed.

"Well…it is nothing but rubble now." Ross answered nervously.

"Dammint! You mean they wiped out everything?" he shouted, twisting a bit too much and he clutched his side in pain.

"This isn't fair! Do you know how close I was to finding out the truth? This is no time for me to be lying around in a hospital!" Edward whined.

"Fullmetal alchemist, sir! I apologize in advance for this!" Ross spoke while standing up right.

_SLAP!_

Edward's face jerked sharply and his eyes filled with shock. Actually, I think all of us were put into that stooper.

"You act like a selfish child! You barley escaped with your lives," she shot me a dirty look, and I shrunk down, before turning back to Edward. "Because you were lucky!" She sighed and smiled letting her voice drop to softer levels. "You don't have to do everything on your own you know? You can lean on other people. Like us. Not all adults are the enemy. You can trust us."

Ross stood upright once more and closed her eyes.

"That's all. Please forgive my conduct sir. It will never happen again." She was military Maria Ross again.

"No. You're right. I should be apologizing." Edward admitted.

"My punishment, sir?" Ross asked with a worried expression.

I could not help it. I let out a laugh and regretted it once pain shot through my side. Winry asked if I was okay and I just nodded.

"Nothing I had it coming."

Both Ross and Bosh almost dropped to their knees. They were so used to being around officers who would have stripped of their titles for such an action.

"Where's Al? I haven't seen him."

"He got his own lecture earlier. But I was elected to slapping." Bosh laughed while holding up his swollen, red hand.

"Yeah that was smart." Edward and I laughed.

The doctor who had helped me the last time I was in here walked in with a smile.

"I hope you coming in here won't be a regular thing miss," he joked while picking up my charts.

I laughed nervously and shook my head. Hopefully this was the last time I would ever be here. And I meant that for all of us.

"Well, you did not retain as much damage as Mr. Elric here did. You actually seem to be doing just fine. You are free to go whenever you wish." He told me before moving on to Edward. "You on the other hand: I would like to keep a watch on you. Just a bit longer."

Edward's face fell and I jumped out of my bed with a smile. I stuck my tongue out and he glared.

"You two are awful." Winry muttered.

The doctor left and I took his place beside Edward.

"I'm only joking." I said softly staring down at his wounds.

"I'm going to get some food. Want anything?"I asked.

He stared up with a small smile and shook his head.

"I ate not too long ago."

I nodded and made my way for the door but I was stopped by Edward's warm hand on my wrist. He winced from his sudden movement but quickly covered it up. He was looking at my hands like they some science project. My eyes widened. Had he seen what happened?

"You're okay? Right?" He whispered so only I could here.

I nodded and he slowly let go. Turing away from me. I bit my lip and looked at Winry who was eyeing me suspiciously. I took this as the right time to leave so I did, but on my way down the halls I saw Alphonse sitting in the dark.

"Yo, Al!" I called almost breaking into a run but the pain in my side urged me not too.

"Oh, hey Serena." He greeted sadly.

"You okay?"

He remained silent. My heart broke for him as he stared down at the toy robot that was kept walking into his foot. A little boy picked it up and smiled at Alphonse before running off.

"Al…"

"I just need to be alone for a while…" He whispered.

I sighed and rose from the spot I had taken next to him.

"Your brother loves you Al. Never forget that." I said before walking away.

**And I need to stop there. My head is starting to spin a bit haha. Still not feeling all that great. I am going to try to continue writing a little later and get the next chapter rolling! Review for me please! Haha thank you!**

**~TwilightRoseAlchemist**


	10. Chapter Nine: The Dreamer's Coma

**This chapter is meant to be short. It is a little look on what is going on with Serena's family.**

**Chapter Nine:**

**The Dreamer's Coma**

Aaron sat on the coach with his father beside him. All of them had finally left the hospital. Melissa had not left their room since they got home. Aaron smiled at the television as _Fullmetal Alchemist _started. He opened his mouth to yell for his sister, but stopped suddenly and frowned. He picked up the remote and shut it the TV off with a glare.

He stood to his feet and walked into the kitchen to embrace is fiancé. She let out a sigh and rubbed his back gently before pulling away and placing a small kiss on his lips.

"It's going to be ok, Aaron." She reassured with a smile before turning back to the stove.

Since Melissa was not feeling well, Sarah had offered to cook dinner for everyone.

Jessica was sitting at their dining room table with a book in hand. Ever since she found out about Serena's coma she had been reading strange books. Some on mythology, astrology and she had taken a particular interest in the news. Serena was not the only one who had fallen into a mysterious coma. People all over the world were reported to have the same fate. Some people freaked out and blamed it all on terrorism. Others said it was the end of the world.

None of that superstition mattered to Serena's family though. All they wanted was for her to be awake again and dancing around the house.

"None of this makes any sense." Jessica muttered before opening a new book.

Aaron narrowed his eyes at Jessica. His family had offered for her to come over every now and again since she was part of this family, but right now he wished she would leave. All of her reading was not going to help out a bit.

"What are you reading now?" Sarah asked with a smile.

"_Wishes on a Secret Moon_. It seemed kinda interesting."

"Changing to fiction now?" Aaron questioned sitting across from Jessica.

"No. It's perfectly real."

Silence filled the room expect for the bubbling water and the turning pages of Jessica's book. It was questionable if she was even reading it from how quickly she was flipping through the pages. Aaron sighed with annoyance and rose to his feet.

"Hey wait!" Jessica shouted standing as well.

Everyone had become use to this by now. Every time Jessica had found something even slightest bit related to Serena's coma she felt the need to announce it to the world. But most of the time it was far from being true.

"_When the moon lines up with the rest of the planets, a certain reaction is admitted. One that scientists haven't been able to come to a conclusion yet, but that night, many were admitted into the hospital, and were all under the same 'sleep,' if you will. A Dreamer's Coma. After an amount of time, they all awoke, and explain how wishes they made had come true. The difference from these wishes and others before them was...'_

"Oh stop it!" Aaron shouted.

He sat down once more and buried his face into his palms. Sarah dropped the spatula and gave her fiancé a look of disapproval. She understood what the family was going through, but Jessica was young and all she was trying to do is help.

"Aaron this really makes sense! We had a Super Moon the night of Serena's birthday! Maybe it was also in line with the other planets!" Jessica urged.

Aaron rose once more and left the room. Jessica pouted and returned to her readings while Sarah stared off sadly, but unknown to them he had marched to the computer in the next room. He was making it his mission to prove Jessica wrong so she would stop her nonsense.

'_Moon phenomenon…Super moon closest it's ever been…watch for the red star as the moon is now aligned with the other planets! This will not happen for another three hundred years...'_

"You got to be shitting me…" Aaron muttered while rereading the news article over and over again before he found himself back in the kitchen.

"What was the difference in the wishes Jessica?" He asked which earned a smile.

"A Selfless wish," She started. "Even if part of the wish was made for a selfish reason, if there was a part of it that was made for other people…it would come true. That sounds like something Serena would do, right?"

Aaron pulled up a chair next to Jessica and laid a small hand on her should with a smile.

"You know, I think you're right."

Sarah smiled as the two began to study the book together. They were probably not going to put it down even when dinner was ready…

_Ring ring_

"I got it!" Charles yelled from the kitchen.

It was fine since no one wanted to move for the phone anyways.

"Everyone get in the car! Serena is waking up!"

Jessica threw that book down like it was nothing more than trash, and Aaron almost fell over his own chair. Melissa was in the car before anyone else, but no matter how fast they wanted to move they could not speed up traffic.

When they made it to the gloomy hospital, all of them tried to crowd Serena's room but nurses desperately tried to push them out. Aaron peered over their shoulders to see blood leaking from Serena's nose and pouring out her side.

"What's wrong with my baby?" Melissa cried.

Aaron glared and shoved the nurse aside. He needed to be by his little sister's side. Her brown eyes were hardly open as he desperately called out for her. She smiled in recognition but her smile quickly faded and her eyes filled with fear.

"Envy…" she whispered quietly.

No one else seemed to hear her. Serena let out a breath and her eyes closed once more. The doctor sighed and shook his head.

"I'm sorry…" He whispered.

Aaron fell to his knees and took his sister's cold hand. His face was filled with confusion. What she had said made his mind spin.

"Envy?...Envy?..."

The homunculus from _Fullmetal Alchemist_ appeared in his mind. Aaron looked at Jessica, who was crying with small hiccups. Everything they were both reading moments before was falling into place like a puzzle.

"No way…"

**Like I said it was meant to be short! Just a look at what's going on in the real world.**


	11. Chapter Ten: As time goes by

**So hopefully the last two chapters were good cause I didn't hear much from ya all haha.**

**Kingofhearltess'09: Assuming you're asking about Envy: No he is not in our world. If you remember back in chapter nine when Serena's arms were fading and Envy kicked her down, she thought she saw Aaron for a moment but that 'illusion' was replaced with Envy being the one standing over her. This is reenacted in Chapter Ten when the doctor calls Serena's family saying that she is waking up from her coma. Aaron was standing over her. She was starting to wake up. But she fell back to sleep and saw Envy in the other world. She was basically sleep talking and Aaron and Jessica are starting to figure things out.**

**Now, on with chapter ten! Woohoo**

**Chapter Ten:**

**As time goes by**

I decided not to go back to the hospital room. After lunch I saw Alphonse finally decided to visit his brother and I knew there was a lot those two needed to talk about. Besides, I had things on my mind as well.

Central was actually a beautiful city. I had found a way to the Hospitals roof. There were very few clouds in the blue sky, a few random blue birds chirping nearby. The hung up laundry was the only thing that ruined the scenery, but once you maneuvered around it, the city below was at your feet.

Smiling, I took a bite out of the apple I had taken along with me. I looked down at the hand which was hold the apple. It was still there. A part of me was waiting for it to start disappearing again and the apple would fall down to the streets below.

"What happened?" I whispered.

It is not something that you see every day, or even in a blue moon, when your limbs start to vanish. My eyes shut as I envisioned everything that had happened. My body felt like I was hardly there. I was light as a feather…on top of that everything was fading. It was not just my arms. Everything that my eyes came into contact to was blurring like paint that was poured down a wall.

But in the fear of it all, I knew I saw Aaron. My brother was very much there. He was the only thing in that clouded mess that stood out clear as the day. How could that even be possible? Something about it bothered me. Aaron looked happy to see me, but quickly that look vanished with worry and fear and soon he too disappeared like everything else and Envy was gazing at me like a newly found toy.

Maybe it was all an illusion. Had I experience enough blood loss and a little brain trauma when Envy kicked me? That made more sense. They say when you are about to die, or in my case in a close encounter, that you envision strange things.

"That's it then." I concluded tossing the finished apple away.

A slamming door noted me that I was no longer alone and heavy footsteps proved that. Who could possibly be up here? It was hard for me to tell since all the laundry sheets covered my sight of the newcomer.

"You know something Al? We haven't had a good fight in a while. I'm starting to get flabby."

It was Edward and the echoing footsteps told me that Alphonse was not far behind. I guessed that Alphonse broke down to Edward. Berry had actually got him to believe that he was nothing but a fabrication that Edward created for his own selfish reasons. I smiled and stared off into the city once more. It was best if I remained hidden and let the brothers solve what they needed.

"Hey! Hold on brother!"

There clanking hits were loud so I knew they were not that far from me. Alphonse was doing more blocking than anything. He was probably shocked that Edward just started a fight in the middle of nowhere.

"Stop!" he called out again.

Floating sheets and a loud crash signified that their battle was over. Of course Edward shouting that he had won was a give a way as well.

"That wasn't a fair fight brother…" Alphonse whined.

I peered behind the sheet blocking my view and smiled at the two brothers who laid opposite sides of each other staring away at the clouds.

"Don't give me that a win is a win and you know it Al…We've always fought like this…ever since we were little. Now that I think about it was over stupid things."

"Defiantly. Like who get the top or bottom bunks, or candy. We fought over that a lot. And in the rain river."

Edward sat up on his elbow and turned to his brother with sad eyes.

"Can you tell me that all of those memories are lies?"

"I'm sorry brother."

"That's right. We're in this together all the way. Never forget that. We gotta keep pushing forward and I'll make ourselves normal again."

I watched as the brothers pounded fists. I was suddenly very glad that I was here. They were wonderful people. All of the pain and trails a head was always going to be worth it because once I went home I would have these two to always remember when the small petty things would bring me down.

I figured now was a good time to come out of hiding.

"Yo." I said while standing over the two.

Both of them jumped, and even though I could only see Edward's eye widen I imagine Alphonse's would have done the same.

"How long have you been here?" Alphonse asked.

"Long enough."

I offered Edward a hand up since he seemed to be having a little trouble. The wound to his side was still painful and after the little bout with Alphonse, it had probably open a little. I gave him a scolding look when a small amount of blood ruined his bandage. He only smiled and shrugged.

"Let's get you some rest." I said which he frowned at.

"I thought since I'm your teacher I should be the one bossing you around," he muttered while limping inside.

"Well High and Mighty is low and injured."

"You calling me short?"

~.~.~.~.~

After a couple more days Edward was finally able to leave the hospital. But before that, the Furher himself had paid us a little visit. Edward and Alphonse were just filling Hughes and Armstrong in on the homunculus and we were planning on digging in a little deeper, but the Fuher believed that now was not the time to be doing such research and that he would attack when the time was right…yeah….sure he was…

Edward and Alphonse believed that going to Dublith to visit their old teacher was the proper next move. Of course Winry noticed that Rush Valley was on the way so she decided to tag along. I was pretty grateful for that. She was nice to have around anyways.

We all sat on the train not looking forward to the trip a head. Train rides were a lot of fun at first, but now it was just starting to get old and very uncomfortable. Hughes, his family, Armstrong, Ross and Bosh had all shown up send their good-byes.

"You all be careful now." Ross ordered with a wink.

"We're just visiting Teacher. I don't think we could get into too much trouble." Alphonse stated.

"Well, I gotta get back to work, but you all stop by my house the first time you head back here." Hughes said with a smile.

"Daddy don't work too late!" Ellysia cried.

My heart broke. This was starting to look familiar and my watered faster than a waterfall. Edward called for me as I rose from my seat and quickly raced to an exit. I had tried a lot of different times over the past month or so since I have been here to change out comes, but it never worked. I only changed how it happened. However, at this moment I was more determined.

I finally made it outside and was standing in front of Hughes with a deep frown. I ignored the whistling train, signaling that it was about to leave soon.

"Stay home with your family tonight," I whispered to Hughes.

He pulled back slightly and eyed me. I could not just flat out say what was going to happen. There would probably be more danger in that.

"Just stay home tonight. Be with your daughter….please."

"Serena get on the train before it leaves without you!" Winry called.

But I refused to move. No before he had given me the answer I needed. Hughes never spoke though. He only gave me a simple nod. I guess that would be enough. The rest was up to him now and I could only hope that he found some kind of warning in my words. That was all I could do.

"What the hell was that about?" Edward questioned.

"I just had to say good-bye."

~.~.~.~

**Three Months Later**

"Aren't we done yet?"

I was breathing heavily and my hair was staring to stick to my face from the small beads of sweat that had started to from. Edward was standing a few feet away in the same condition. I had learned to quit keeping track of the time we spent on training but this was starting to get ridiculous.

"Almost." He said coming for me again.

Letting out a sigh, I dodged his fist and crouched down sending my leg out, but he hopped over it easily.

"Trying to use that trick on me now?" He laughed before turning on me.

I shrugged and flipped back.

"It was worth a try."

Edward's sudden grin made me nervous. Crouching down, he lunged himself upward and kicked himself off a nearby tree and had me down on the ground faster than I could think. I did not ever remember him teaching me how to block that one. I think it was the pray they miss technique or hope you are fast enough.

"You're getting harder to beat, but I'm still better." Edward laughed while assisting me up.

I brushed the grass off and sighed. He was right. Over the past few months Edward and I spent every moment we had that did not consist of "Stone Time," as I dubbed it, training. And not to toot my own horn or anything but I was getting pretty good. However, it seemed that every time we did train Edward was getting better himself. I never made it my goal to be better than him, but if I could just beat him in the fighting portion once….my life would be complete.

"Come inside and eat!" Izumi, Edward and Alphonse's teacher, screamed.

After our journey to Rush Valley, which Winry had decided to stay out so she could improve her engineering skills, we had decided to stay in Dublith with Izumi and her husband for a while. Edward and Alphonse needed some time to improve their own skills, and possibly learn a few things about alchemy that they had not learned from her already. However, once she had found out that her two students had performed human transmutation she was quick to send them on their way and disown them as her students.

They took this as their chance to be able to fight back against her now. Since Izumi was no longer their teacher, they could easily ask her anything they wanted. They were equals now after all.

"I still don't know why you trust this brat to be your alchemy teacher." Izumi stated while cutting into her food.

"He's actually not too bad." I defended

Izumi usually always had a comment about Edward being my teacher but it did make sense. There were even times when she came out to watch our sessions, whether they were fighting or alchemy, and drop in her own input. She even went as far as saying a "better method." I knew she meant well. Edward may have gotten annoyed by it but I do not think that he saw that she was only doing it to teach him some things….as well as get on his nerves.

"I was starting to doubt myself since you sucked there for a while." Edward took a large bite and grinned.

"I take that back. He is a lousy teacher. I only got good cause I asked Al for help." I lied while ignoring Edward's gaze and turning to Izumi with a pleasant grin.

"Don't drag me into this…" Alphonse whined.

Izumi smiled sweetly and continued on with her meal. She could be a very terrifying woman at times, but I think she enjoyed having all of us around. We were a bunch of children in her own home and it gave her the opportunity to enjoy what a family could be like.

"That's not what you said when you were begging me to be your teacher." Edward shot back.

It was kind of a late response though. He must had been thinking over it for a while. I turned my head quickly to fire something back but I had a sense of head rush that stopped my mouth from opening. The room was spinning slightly and my body suddenly felt warm. My eyes narrowed and Edward took this as a sign of my defeat since he whole face lit up. I stared down at my food and felt queasy.

"Excuse me." I said to Izumi before slowing retreating the room.

"You made her leave brother!" Alphonse scolded.

I smiled slightly as I entered what had been my room since we arrived. Even though Edward was not the reason I had left the dinner table, it was still entertaining to hear.

I dropped to my bed and stared out the window. It was a full moon tonight. I had not stopped to look at one since the night of my birthday. Even though this one was not as magnificent as the one that night, it was still a beauty to behold.

Sighing, I placed a hand to my face only to be greeted by beads of sweat. My body heat seemed to be off the charts and my head was still spinning.

"You apologize brother."

"Ok, ok I will!"

Their voices were just outside my door and a small knock clarified that. I could not find it in me to answer though. The door slowly opened and in popped Edward's head.

"Hey Serena?" He asked quietly. He probably thought I was asleep.

"Hm?"

Edward took this as permission to waltz right in.

"Sorry if I made you mad early…I was only joking you know?"

Apologizes between Edward and I were starting to become a lot easier. Before he would refuse to say it, then he would whisper it. Now he just looks uncomfortable but at least he says it loud enough to only have to say it once instead of me asking him a million times what he had said.

"I was never mad." I laughed but it sounded horse.

"You feeling ok?" He asked leaning over me suddenly.

"Peachy." I said recalling the first thing I had spoken to when his brother had asked something similar to that our first meeting.

Edward smiled and placed a hand to my forehead. His smile quickly faded and he left the room. My brow raised while I stared out the door. It was a quick exit that I had not planned on. Before my eyes could shut, Izumi came marching in with a pot and Edward and Alphonse were behind her.

"Definitely sick." Izumi concluded while gently placing a wet cloth to my face.

I could have told them all that…

"Oh…I'm sorry Serena."

I stared up at Alphonse with a small smile. Of course someone like him would apologize for something like this.

"It's nothing for you to be sorry over. Not like you made me sick."

"Can I get you something?" He asked sweetly.

But before I could answer Izumi was shoving both him and Edward out of my room.

"What you can get her is rest. Now leave!" She yelled and they ran away without question.

Izumi sat down in a chair and dabbed a new cloth across my forehand. In that moment she reminded me of my own mother. Every time I had stayed home from school sick she always called to see if I needed anything. And once she was off work she would dab a wet cloth on me just like Izumi….and she had that far off look in her eyes…a look that still said she enjoyed being a mother. I knew Izumi had lost her own child before she even had a chance to mother it…so I did not say a word. All I did was thank her…

"Get some rest…let me know if you need anything." She muttered before leaving suddenly.

The lights went out and turned to face the moon once more. I never liked being ill. It messed with my moods. I got angry and annoyed quickly, which Aaron used to love when he still lived at home, but I also liked to cuddle. My mom was my best friend whenever this happened….I used to lay on her lap all the time, and because she was not here now…I felt lonely for the first time since I had come here…I started to wonder how she was doing. Was she worried about me? They all probably thought I had run away or that I was kidnapped…what was I going to say them when I was finally home again? I better start thinking of some kind of explanation soon.

The squeaking door made me turn around and Edward's sheepish grin came through. He placed a figure to his lips signaling me to keep quiet. Probably so Izumi did not hear anything and come yelling at him again. He carefully closed the door and came over to my side with a book.

"Al said you used to read a lot when you're sick sooo…" He quit talking and just handed it to me.

It was an alchemy book of course but it was one I had not read before. Actually it was a bit more complicated but I could understand it quite well.

"Thanks."

He was not even looking at me. I could only guess he was a little uncomfortable or embarrassed. It was most likely a mixture of both though. Edward was not known for doing random acts of kindness so openly like Alphonse. It actually surprised me that Edward was bringing me the book and not Edward.

"You didn't really ask Al for help did you?" He asked suddenly.

My face fell and I could not help but laugh. The conversation at dinner had happen over an hour ago and he still had that thought on his mind.

"No! I was trying to annoy you! We were joking remember?"

I could not believe he had even considered that I was telling the truth about him not being a good teacher. On the contrary, Edward was a great instructor. He was clear when explaining things and even though he did lose patients whenever I could not understand something right away he did not give up.

"Look at this." Edward said suddenly, snatching the book from my hands and flipping through the pages.

He pointed to a transmutation circle that looked familiar. I bit my lip and looked up at him. He was waiting for me to figure it out but I could honestly not place it.

"It's the one we saw at lab five." He finally said.

And then he went on. He would not shut up actually. Everything he was talking about was flying over my head though.

"Slow down!" I sighed.

Scooting over, I let Edward sit down on the bed next to me and he flipped through more pages and began to dumb everything down for me. Even though I was still faint, I could not ask him to stop. I wanted to know more and since he seemed so happy about stumbling upon a clue, I could not find it in my heart to tell him I was tired.

After a while though his words were sounding like mumbles and my eyes were becoming heavier…and heavier…..and…heavier….

~.~.~.~

"Brother is taking a long time!" Alphonse thought before leaving the room he and his older brother were sharing.

Alphonse carefully took steps down the hall. It was hard to stay quite when you were a large walking suit of armor though. He stopped outside of Serena's door and sighed when he noticed the light that was peering through the cracks.

"So much for just showing her the book…they probably got caught in reading it…" He whispered before opening the door.

But what met his eyes shocked him. Both of them were fast asleep. Serena, who looked like she had passed out a long time ago, had her head placed on Edward's shoulder, and Edward's head had fallen on top of hers. His automail hand held their alchemy book wide open while the other was placed up his shirt slightly so his stomach was slightly showing.

"Always sleeping with your belly out." Alphonse laughed while moving to wake his elder brother.

Edward yawned as his golden eyes slowly opened. He started to stretch out but Alphonse waived his hands and quietly asked him not to move. His brow raised until he noticed the weight on his shoulder. His face flushed as he found Serena to be the reason. Slowly shifting his weight, he began to lower her down to the bed but then the oddest thing occurred. Edward's hands that were holding Serena suddenly passed through her and she became as transparent as a ghost, but she returned to normal before landing on the soft cushions. Serena let out a breath and rolled over continuing to be lost in sleep.

Edward and Alphonse backed away and stared at each other.

"Brother…what was that?"

Edward shook his head and quietly left the room. Images of Serena facing Envy and staring at her fading arms flashed through his mind. He turned and looked at her room.

"I really don't know…"

**And I am choosing to end it here because what I have planned does not sync with this chapter. Review please!**

**~TwilightRoseAlchemist**


	12. Chapter Eleven: Greed

**So people have been asking if Serena is going back to her world…you'll have to wait and see haha.**

**Thank you all for the reviews again! I know this chapter took a bit longer than usual to get out, but I was working a lot and I was rewriting a lot of different parts in this one haha. Well enjoy!**

**Like always I do not own Fullmetal Alchemist or its characters.**

**Chapter Eleven:**

**Greed**

The sky was filled with orange and yellow and the sun was starting to vanish behind the mountains. I do not know how long I had been gazing off but I was in no rush to move since I had already wasted the rest of the day sleeping. At least I was feeling better though.

I finally gave in and decided it would be good to make an appearance. I am usually a light sleeper and I always wake up because of some noise the brother's made, but it was very peaceful in the house today. The only sound that filled my ears was a knife hitting a cutting board which was most likely caused by Izumi and her husband, Sig.

"Feeling any better?" Sig asked.

I have to admit the man made me nervous. He was just as large, if not just a bit more, as Major Armstrong. He was not the happy spirit though. In fact Sig was unnaturally quiet which made him all the more intimidating….of course the large butcher knife did add a nice affect to that too.

"I am. Thank you."

I sat down at the counter and watched each of them slicer various things. I do not know why, but I always enjoyed watching people cook. Slicing everything so nicely, add all these different spices that I had never heard of and how they just seemed to add the right amount every time.

"Where are those two?" Izumi sighed while setting down her knife.

It was then I remember why I had chosen to get out of bed in the first place. It was very quiet today. Too quiet actually. Sig set down his knife and made his way out the back door while Izumi chose to go back to work. Hopping out of my chair I began to wonder each of the rooms but there was no familiar sign of a large suit of armor or short tempered blonde.

"I found this in the street." Sig spoke from the kitchen.

"Those two are so incompetent that they can't even handle a single chore!"

I followed their voices outside to see Sig holding a broom while Izumi fumed and glance around the area.

"They're lucky they're not my students anymore otherwise I'd kill them!" She shouted.

I laughed a little and I was very grateful that I had not been one of her students. Not that she would not have been a wonderful teacher. I honestly would have considered it to be an hour to learn from her, but I was actually very content with not being terrified of my teacher.

"This should help you find them."

A man I saw every once in a while came up to us and handed Izumi, what looked like, a box of matches.

"I saw the blonde one follow someone into a bar called The Devil's Nest." He finished.

Izumi glared off and began to march away. My breath caught in my throat while my gaze fell to the gravel below me. I was angry…not that sounds like such an understatement to the heat that was rushing from my chest to my face. My fists were clenched so hard that I could have drawn blood.

"Idiot should have woke me up!" I hissed while running after Izumi.

I do not know why I was so furious. Sure I understand. I was sick the night before so no one wanted to wake me up, yeah I got that, but I knew very well where Edward was right now and what Alphonse was facing. Alphonse was taken captive by a band of chimeras and Edward was led that the area of captivity by a lizard man. Would that not be a wonderful reason to wake me up despite everything?

Izumi's angry mumbling knocked me back into a little bit of sense and my angry steps started to move with a different motivation. I was not thinking very clearly. Alphonse was in some trouble. If some strange lizard looking man came to my brother and said I was taken captive, I'm pretty sure he would have just taken off without even calling the police or telling my parents. So Edward running off was reasonable. Still, I wish I was there in the moment to help. That unsettling feeling of helpless rose in my chest…why did I care so much?

We were before the Devil's Nest faster than I thought we would be. There was no time for me to be lost in my thoughts now. Now it was time to rush in their like the A-Team and let everything fall into place. Izumi was walking down the bar halls in a normal pace that it was killing me each step. I was very tempted to hear her secret in how to stay so calm. Edward's shouting, and the man he was fighting with, was vibrating off every wall. It was obvious where Edward was once we spotted a man guarding a door. He crossed his arms once he noticed our presence.

"Leave now if you know what's good for you." He mumbled.

I honestly felt sorry for the man. Izumi took him out faster than I could blink. Poor guy was just in the wrong place at the wrong time. Izumi clapped her hands and slammed them to the door causing it to cave in. I guess she found it a more fitting entrance then actually opening the door.

When the dust cleared, Edward's battered form was the first thing I noticed. Blood was seeping through his shirt, and poured down his face. His automail arm was had seen better days as well. Wires were sticking out in different directions while the top have, which covered the wires normally, was tossed on the other side of the room.

"Sorry to barge in like this." Izumi spoke while dragging in the guard she had beaten down only moments before.

"T-teacher?" Edward stuttered.

"You imbecile!" Izumi started while throwing the unconcious guard at Edward. "You think it's funny not to put the broom away?"

You know when you're angry at your siblings, or even a friend and you want to throw something at them but take the sane way out and use a pillow instead of a chair or some hard, dangerous object like that? Well, Izumi did not even care one bit that she ignored that principle and used the guard man like a pillow! Edward was knocked to the other side of the room and had the look of fear in his eyes. Here he was facing one of the strongest homunculi without fear, but once Izumi walks in he is a scared little boy. Not that I blame him. I would be too if someone threw a man at me for crying out loud.

"No! I'm so sorry!" Edward begged.

Izumi turned to the homunculus known as Greed with a thankful stare.

"Thank you for your hospitality. He definitely needed the exercise."

"More like a good ass kicking." I muttered while moving to Edward's side.

He was very hurt. It was painful to look at. My own sides started to burn once I got a good look at the deep cuts that were inflicted on him. I wondered how many more times I was going to have to witness these sorts of things.

"Where's Alphonse?" I finally asked Edward but it was hard to mask the anger I was still feeling.

"Some chimeras took him that way."

Edward pointed to a doorway opposite of the one Izumi and I had entered in. I nodded and went over the options. I could stay here and help these two fights Greed or go after Alphonse. Seeing as it was Izumi and Edward we were talking about here…I went with finding Alphonse.

"Give me a break you're not going to try and stop me now are you? It's no fun fighting a woman…" Greed was not able to finish his thought because Izumi had come running straight for him and place a hand on his shielded face to break down the shield and then swiftly kicked him to the far side of the room.

The right half of Greed's face was torn off and red sparks flew around him as his face took a human form. He began to laugh.

"Well now. Just what the hell are you?" he asked with amusement.

"You ask what I am." She whispered before standing tall, and proud and pointed to her chest. "A HOUSEWIFE!"

If the fires of hell were able to be here in the place of Izumi's anger than I think we would have burnt to a crisp with the rest of this world. She was an amazing woman all right. Edward finally stood to his feet and stood beside me.

"I'm gonna go after Al." I spoke with out looking at him.

I ran for the door but Greed was quick to stand in the way. His maniacal laughter continued. He was truly enjoying the challenges that were set before him.

"A housewife, a hot headed brat. What does that make you then?"

"No one of your concern." Edward shouted while he and Izumi stood beside me now ready to strike Greed down.

"Either way, this is not a battle I am particularly interested in fighting. I'll just be on my way now." Greed sighed.

"What?" Edward asked bemused.

"You coward!" Izumi hissed but then bellowed over once blood came coughing out of her mouth.

Edward and I yelled in shock but then quickly rushed to her aid. Izumi was a very strong person so to see her spitting out blood and in a moment of weakness, it was unnerving.

"Teacher what's wrong?"

I watched as Greed to this chance to run out the door. His shield completely dropped now and a large grin was plastered on his face through his escape.

"He ran away. How pathetic." Izumi hissed through shallow breaths.

"You okay now?" Edward asked but the got his answer seconds later when Izumi spit out more blood.

"I'm going after him." I muttered before breaking into a run once more but only to be stopped by officers holding guns at us.

"Oh come on!" I shouted throwing my hands into the air.

All I wanted was to go after Alphonse and make sure he was okay but each time I made the slightest effort someone had to get in my way. It was starting to irk me and I was not in the right mood to begin with.

"Mr. Elric sir!" One of them spoke while others lowered their guns in recognizing the Fullmetal Alchemist.

"The Furher Bradley has gone ahead after the suspects. Are you alright Sir?"

"The Furher is here?" Edward muttered before answering the many questions each officer had.

Izumi, much to her disagreement, was handed over to the officers so that they could watch over her while Edward and I would follow the Furher, which is what we told them anyways. Honestly, we could care less what that man did. We just needed to get to Alphonse. Nothing else mattered.

The sewers reeked. You know that kind of smell when you are on a road trip and you pass a farm of cows? Imagine that times two

"Do you know where they are?" Edward questioned me.

I shook my head no and tried to listen to where the sounds of a confrontation were coming from. If we found where ever Greed was fighting then Alphonse would be close.

"You're positive?"

I narrowed my eyes at him and shook my head once more. Yes I was still angry with him. Was this not the right time for that? No it was not, but I did not care at the moment. Edward caught on to the sound of Greed's maniacal laugh and took off faster than a bullet and I was not that far behind. We took many twists and turns but suddenly found ourselves lost once all sound ceased.

"Martle stop!"

It was Alphonse! Edward grinned and raced on ward once more, but by the time we had found him there was blood pouring out of his armor by the gallons. My nose scrunched and I turned away from the horrific sight while Edward rushed forward and called for his brother, but he would not answer.

"Al say something!" Edward pleaded.

"Edward Elric?"

Both of us turned our attention to a solemn looking Major Armstrong. He looked like he had seen better days and had taken a beating or two of his own as well. A lot more had happened down here that we had missed beside Alphonse and his state.

Alphonse still refused to speak. In fact, the red glow that took place as his eyes were not there. Edward was becoming more worried with each passing second so the Major helped carry Alphonse out of the sewers since Edward was demanding to look at the blood seal he had created. If the blood had covered Alphonse's blood seal than he would be gone.

I had to look away when some officers opened Alphonse's breast plate and the snake chimera, Martle, came into view. Her eyes and skin were pale with death and he face was so contorted in anger. She had met a very cruel and untimely death. None of this seemed to faze Edward though. If it did he covered it very well with the worry he felt for his brother. Some relief came into his golden eyes when the blood seal was proven to be in perfect shape.

"Al wake up! Say something….AL!"

Finally those red eyes came to life and the armor twitched ever so slightly.

"Brother?" That innocent voice finally spoke.

"You okay?" Edward breathed with a sigh.

"Are you okay? You're covered in blood?"

Both Edward and I turned away with sad eyes once Alphonse realized that most of the blood that Edward was covered in was not his own, but Martle's whose form was now covered with a pale white sheet. Major Armstrong stepped forward and leaned down next to the young boy.

"We thought it best to open you and remove her before you awoke." He spoke gently.

"I couldn't save her." Alphonse cried with his invisible tears.

"You can't blame yourself, Al." I said while sliding down the wall next to him.

There was still a lot of blood on the floor but it was a lot easier to ignore now that Alphonse was awake.

"Come on. Let's go home." Edward smiled.

There he went masking everything again. He was trying to cover up all the pain and be a big brother. Seeing Alphonse so distraught was something he could not have. Alphonse stayed silent for a little while before he nodded his head and started to rise.

"Just a minute. There are some questions I need to ask you."

The Furher marched up to us with his hands crossed behind his back and standing with pride.

"Have either of you had any previous dealings with a man who referred to himself as Greed?" Bradley questioned now standing before us.

'Yup. He's a homunculus that got his ass beat like you will.' I thought with a sigh.

"Of course not." Edward spoke truthfully while rising to his feet.

"Did any of you trade information with him?"

The officers who had assisted us before were behind the King with their guns clenched tight at his question. They were ready to shoot the brother's down if they had indeed traded information.

"Not at all. And the military wasn't even mention. Not once." Edward narrowed his eyes at the guns man. He was almost daring them to fire a bullet at him.

"That isn't my total concern. Let me be more specific." Bradley's voice dropped low and threatening. "If you arranged a meeting to exchange any information with him I will execute you on the spot. Now I'll ask again: Did you share any knowledge that might affect the military?"

Edward sighed and faced the Furher with a rather bored, but annoyed expression.

"No. Can we go now?"

The Furher narrowed his eyes and refused to drop everything just yet.

"I am curious about your steal arm and leg and your brother's armored body. Is there any connection between the two?"

Many of us who knew the brother's secret tensed up. If someone like the Furher had learned of their ultimate sin, then who knows what kind of more hard ships they would have to face. But all of that tension faded when a genuine smile appeared on Bradley's face.

"You truly are on honest kid." He laughed while turning to leave us. "All right men pull out! You made sure to take care of your younger brother, Edward."

And just like that he was gone…

~.~.~.~.~.~

Despite all of our hopes of Bradley finally leaving us alone, he had decided to follow us back to Izumi's home. In fact, he was interested in trying to recruit her as a State Alchemist. I secretly wished she would throw him around a bit like she had done to Greed. Hey, if I was able to wish myself into this world then I think anything is possible at this point.

Edward and I sat outside polishing off Alphonse's armor while Major Armstrong listened to all the events of the day.

"There is something I forgot to mention: Greed had an arborous tattoo." Edward spoke.

"I'm not sure I follow."

"Think back to the fifth laboratory. Remember the guys Ed told you and Hughes about?" I said while placing the now clean shoulder plate back where it belonged on Alphonse.

Major Armstrong stiffened a bit and I gazed up at him with curiosity. Was the memory that bad to him?

"Colonel Hughes…I..." Armstrong trailed off while shutting his eyes. He opened them again with a new found determination and held Edward's shoulders with seriousness.

"Listen to me Edward Elric. Do not do anything rash." It was a demand. There was no suggestion in his tone what so ever.

"Sure…." Edward muttered taken off guard.

"Well, good night."

The military defiantly had a way of making you nervous and then just up and leaving you with questions. It must have been a job requirement.

"All my memories of when my body was taken away are back."Alphonse suddenly spoke.

Edward and I stayed silent and gave Alphonse our full and undivided attention.

"But I didn't find out anything about how to get our bodies back." He sighed.

"That's okay." Edward smiled while handing Alphonse a clean breast plate.

"So much for progress." Alphonse whined.

"I wouldn't say that." I grinned at the brothers.

Edward nodded in agreement and explained the rest to Alphonse. There was a connection between Greed and the other homunculi that much was obvious, but also with 'the unrest in the military' as Bradley had spoken before back in Central.

I turned and let the brother's have their alchemy moment. Even though it was a very important conversation, it was not something that I needed to necessarily listen to. Sig was carrying some food into his and Izumi's room. She was most likely still not feeling well. I smiled at the kind of man Sig was. It was pleasant to see how well he treated his wife. They were very perfect for each other.

"Serena? You okay?"

I turned around to see Edward with his head tilted to the side.

"You just up left so…"

I guess leaving walking away without an explanation was a little strange. I was too lost in my own thoughts to think about it though.

"Yeah, sorry." I muttered before turning away once more.

"You've been acting weird. Still not feeling well?"

I was not as angry at Edward like I was anymore, but it was aggravating that I could not stay mad at him with Edward being concerned. I sighed and turned toward him once more and give in to what I had learned from Izumi over the time I had spent here, so I punched his shoulder with a heavy glare. So I did not do exactly what Izumi would have done but it was very satisfying.

"I'm fine now." I smiled at Edward's wide eyes and turned away.

"What the hell was that for?" He shouted gripping his shoulder.

"For not waking me up you moron!" I retaliated while still walking away.

"Really? That's it?"

Suddenly Edward's laughter broke through the whole house. I clenched my fists and turned to face him once more with narrowed eyes. How could he be laughing? At me none of the less.

"And here I thought it was something serious," He continued.

"It is serious Ed! I was worried about you!" I shouted closing the large gap between us a bit.

His laughter ceased and his yellow eyes filled with surprise. I am not sure if it was because I was actually yelling at him or if the fact I was worried was such a strange thing to him.

"I know you're fully capable of kicking ass but seriously I am here for a reason! You wouldn't be so hurt if I was there." I started to feel like I was rambling.

I lost track of all the ranting I was saying. I was yelling on auto-pilot I guess. I was more so thinking about why it bothered me so much. My shouting trailed off when a slow smile formed on Edward's face. It was not a smile I normally saw though. This one was rare. It was gentle and one that he only gave his brother from time to time. My face heated up and that same heat I felt before rose in my chest.

"I'm sorry." He finally spoke and this through me off guard. Since when did the prideful Edward Elric get so good at apologizes.

"Forgive me?"

I could feel that he meant it but I could also see the teasing in his eyes. It was just like the time I asked for his forgiveness after Scar. He knew that too, and he was enjoying it. Edward was mocking me and asking for forgiveness at the same time. Well, it was a step forward from not saying anything at all. I let out an aggravated sigh and crossed my arms.

"Okay. But don't expect to get off so easily next time." I lowered my voice in trying to sound like Edward.

His goofy grin faded and his eyes narrowed.

"I don't sound like that…" he mumbled.

"KEEP QUIET OUT THERE!"

A large table came flying our way and Edward and I screamed in fear as we barely dodged the dangerous object. Izumi gazed fire at us with a warning and then slammed her bedroom door leaving us shocked and bewildered. It took Edward's body twitching with his quite laughs for me to notice how close we were all the sudden. In dodging the incoming eradicating object we had both decided that tossing ourselves to the nearby wall was the best bet. It was not surprising since I had learned everything from him but still…

His upper arm was pressed to my shoulder while his human hand lightly grazed my finger with each twitching laugh. It was a strange sensation when heat rushed through me once more. Normally, I would have been laughing with him, but the emotions that coursed through my veins cast me into silence.

Edward pushed himself off the wall and called for his younger brother before he turned back to me with a smug grin.

"Don't worry. You'll get used to her throwing things at you." He laughed once as Alphonse came into the room.

"We're going to Rush Valley tomorrow to see Winry!" Alphonse said cheerfully.

The two brothers left the room and I took this time to finally breathe and slide down the wall. I looked up at the ceiling fan in wonder while the foreign emotions that had taken control over my body slowly started to fade with each rotation the fan made. What was going on with me? I jumped as Edward poked his head behind a wall with a cheeky grin.

"You comin?"

I nodded while my cheeks flushed with embarrassment. While followed behind the brothers and listened to their laughter my mind started to slowly make sense of it all. My chest held that familiar warmth I felt whenever I had started to like someone at School. Whenever you started to become more aware of the things you did or even worried about a person.

I was angry at Edward for not waking me because I wanted to help, which that was part of the reason, but I was starting to care more than what I should be.

This was not good….not at all.

**Okay so like I the description says this is an adventure romance type story. However I am not going to make this all lovey dovey and that stuff….I need to stay true to the series and characters. In all of the stuff the brother's face I do not believe Edward would get all serious with a girl haha. I mean it took till the last (SPOILER!) episode for him to kinda admit he liked Winry haha. **

**There will be moments though trust me haha. That much is allowed. But realistically, building a relationship between the two will take time lol.**

**I have started to write the next chapter but it may take a bit longer since I am going to be introducing Ling and his crew haha. Which is a lot of fun to write. **

**Anyways, hope you liked this chapter! Please review so my motivation stays high lol. Hey I'm honest!**

**~TwilightRoseAlchemist**


	13. Chapter Twelve: The Difference

**Thank you to those who reviewed! I spent a lot of time on this chapter so I sure hope you enjoy it! So, I now have the weekend off since the doctor told me I have influenza haha. More time to write now I guess.**

**I do not own Fullmetal Alchemist or its characters!**

**Chapter Twelve:**

**The Difference**

It was hard to believe how two towns, that were not that far apart, could be so different in temperature. Dublith was quite cool and every now and again there were flakes of snow. Rushvalley on the other hand, was very warm for this time of year. It was understandable though. This town was not surrounded by green but by a vast amount of sand. A place like this hardly ever saw rain so its winter months were not cold and covered in snow, but warm, not scorching hot, and dry. This was a perfect time of year for its inhabitants though.

Children were running around playing with one another and those with automail compared to see which one of them had the best. Adults were similar in this way. Everyone who lived in Rushvalley seemed to have automail and they were constantly showing it off and looking for ways to improve it.

This is why Winry had decided to stay here a few months ago. After meeting the pick-pocket Pinena, we came across her guardian who happened to be a master automail engineer. Winry had wanted to become his apprentice but he roughly refused until she had helped deliver his grandchild. That was one of the most frightening moments in my life and I am very glad that I have no younger siblings. I could just imagine what my brother went through when I was born.

It was very convenient that Winry had decided to stay in Rushvalley actually. After the damage Edward had taken in the battle with Greed, it was easier to travel here than all the way back to Risembool. Which was very wonderful to me since four days on a train did not seem like the best time in the world.

Edward had been sulking since we had gotten off the train. Alphonse and I could not blame him though. His automail was on the verge of being in a pile of scraps. When we had left laboratory five, Edward's automail was only damaged because of a missing screw. There was nothing else that really needed to be fixed and Winry was okay with that, but once she saw the shape his automail was in now, well Edward might not be alive in the next five minutes. At least that is what he thought.

"It's not gonna be that bad Ed." I said for the fifteenth time that day.

We were standing outside of Garfiel's shop which is where Winry was doing most of her automail work. Garfiel was a very flamboyant man but he was still wonderful to be around and did attract a lot of costumers which Winry was able to assist and enrich her skills as well.

Familiar blonde hair came bouncing out of the shop. Winry was carrying a large crate with a small smile on her face.

"Well, start sucking up." I laughed while bouncing over to Winry and surprising her slightly with a small embrace.

"Hey! What are you doing here?" she laughed.

"You're looking in a wonderfully generous mood today!" Edward spoke up with a large smile.

"What are you all doing showing up like this?"

Winry did look truly excited to see the brothers. Her cheerful grin slowly faded however when Edward raised his broken automail. He kept the smile on his face because he was hoping that she would continue to stay in her happy mood.

Next thing we all knew we were inside the shop with Winry rapping up Edward's automail while he was lying down with blood pouring from his head. Winry had gone a little too far with her wrench from hell.

"Honestly, even Pinena is holding down a job and you can't stay out of trouble." Winry mumbled through her work.

"She is?" Alphonse questioned with surprise.

"Yup. She left her life as a pick-pocket and now she earns a living by fixing roofs and doing other odd jobs around town." Her smiled faded and her tone made a turn. "And what about you three? Any progress yet?"

"Yeah we have! It's still slow going though."

Alphonse sounded excited but you could tell that he was trying to hide something. I did not understand why the brothers constantly felt like they needed to lie to Winry. She was their best friend since they were born practically and they wanted to keep secrets. I guess I understood the fact of trying to protect her from getting involved but was the horrible dishonest comments truly necessary every single time? Edward sat up and turned his gaze away from her.

"We're still moving ahead little by little."

Winry sighed and frowned.

"Good glad to hear it."

Winry knew that she could not force the brothers to tell her anything. Actually she has started to come to grips with it all. They would come to her when it was necessary and she would be there for them when that time came.

"Well, I've done all I can for now. I'm missing some parts so you'll have to deal with the patch job for now. I'll get what we need, but until then you've got some time to kill." Winry waved while she started for the door.

"Great. We've never been good at killing time." I whined as we started to wander the town.

It's not like there was a lot to do in a town that was made up of automail maniacs. All we could do was wander and observe those around us.

"What do we do now? Not much to do in a town made of automail shops." Edward sighed.

I nodded in agreement while sucking down a soda we had stopped to get.

"Who loves orange soda? I love orange soda! I do, I do, I dooo!" I laughed while tossing the empty drink in a trash can.

Edward raised his brow and chewed on his straw. I thought that they would get used to my modern quotes but I guess it still made them think I was insane which I very much enjoyed from time to time.

"I don't wanna know…" He muttered while searching the area.

At some point Alphonse had wondered off. It was still strange that he could disappear so easily since he stood out like a water buffalo in the arctic. We found him sitting by an alley way not too far from us.

"Brother…" He spoke with nervousness in his voice.

"What now? Found a stray cat or something?" Edward asked as we made our way over.

"We should keep it!" I laughed and Edward sent a glare my way while taking another swing of his drink.

"Well no…" Alphonse said while holding up an unconscious man which made Edward spew out his drink all over.

The man had long black hair that was pulled back in a pony tail but strands still hung loosely around his face. He wore a foreign, long yellow shirt which was embroidered white that matched the white pants that puffed out like martial artists. My face lit up with recognition.

"The ultimate bad ass!" I shouted with my arms raised in the air.

"We should help him." Alphonse said.

"He just needs some food."

Alphonse and I were off with the unconscious foreigner and left Edward bewildered and confused. I think he was still in shock over the fact that his brother went from finding stray cats to passed out men the in the streets.

"Woo! Thanks a lot! You all are life savers! Your treat right!" The man spoke gleefully after many empty plates lay before him.

"Whoever said I was paying?"

Edward did not seem to like this new comer very much, but when did he ever seem open to new people?

"Let's not quivel over something so small?"

"WHO ARE YOU CALLING SMALL?"

"How lucky am I come across such hospitality so far from home?"

Edward's fuming dropped slightly as his interest piped up.

"Far from home? You're not from here?" Alphonse asked.

"That's right. I came from Xing."

I laughed to myself slightly and rose from my seat. There were two blades sheathed on the man's back and I wanted to get a better look at them up close.

"The county from the east of the desert?" Edward questioned while eyeing me suspiciously.

"That's right. And crossing that desert is rough let me tell you."

"I bet! Can I see these?" I asked pointing to his weapons.

I had to admit I was very excited at the moment and I was hoping I would not embarrass myself, but I was always amazed by this goofy, annoying yet very skilled character. He seemed a little hesitant but reluctantly unsheathed the two blades.

"So why did you go that route?" Alphonse piped in while I gawked at the swords.

"I wanted to see the ruins of Xerxes since that route goes by there."

"I heard there's nothing but rubble there..."

"This is so awesome! You should so teach me how to use these!" I mused while handing the blades back to their owner.

"Serena, sit down." Edward ordered slightly.

The man laughed and sheathed them back.

"You're a different one aren't you…anyway I was heading here to do some alchehistory research which is what I believe you call in this country alchemy…In Xing it's called Alchehistory and is mainly used in the medical field."

"Different country different customs I guess." Edward spoke thoughtfully.

"Alchemy is mainly used for military here because of the surrounding countries we have issues with." He continued.

"Sounds like you have your hands full."

"I have to say I'm curious about alchehistory. A branch of alchemy that is medically specialized." Alphonse said and Edward agreed with him.

"By any chance...are any of you alchemists?" The man questioned and there was a tone of seriousness that had risen.

"Well yeah. I'm Edward Elric a state alchemist."

"And I'm his younger brother: Alphonse Elric."

"And you?" The man questioned.

"Well, I'm not as great as an alchemist yet as these but…yeah I guess I am. My name is Serena." I answered rather proudly.

"My name is Ling Yao. It's a pleasure."

"So Ling, what can you tell us about alchehistory?"

Edward's bitterness towards Ling had ended quite some time ago. Of course that was all because another branch of alchemy was mentioned so naturally he would open up.

"Nothing. Sorry but I am not an alchehistorist."

"If you don't practice alchehistory then why come all the way here to research it?" And Edward's annoyed expression returned.

"Well you see I'm looking for something. Perhaps you've heard of it? The Philosopher's Stone."

At the mention of the stone, all of Ling's playfulness had vanished and tension rose between the two brothers.

"I'm very eager to find it. Do you know anything about it?"

"No, we can't help you."

And with that Edward rose from his seat and started to drag Alphonse and I with him. Since Ling was after the Philosopher's Stone as well there was nothing that made Edward want anything to do with Ling. He would be just another person in the way of their goal.

"You wouldn't be lying to me now, would you?"

Ling snapped his fingers and two masked figures suddenly appeared. One of them held a dagger to Edward's neck and other held his sword toward Alphonse. Ling was going to force answers.

"Now, do you have something to tell me?" Ling questioned with a smile.

"Why the interest in the stone?" Edward was not even fazed by the danger pointed toward him. This was just another day in life of Elric.

"I want to achieve immortality. Now out with it. What do you know?"

Ling rose to his feet and took a few subtle steps forward.

"Immortality? Please, what a bunch of nonsense."

"Not to me it isn't."

"In any case, I don't say I care too much in your way of asking questions." Edward stated while using his automail to shove the dagger away from him. "Kind of rude don't you think?"

"What about you? You said you're an alchemist right? Do you know anything about the Philosopher's Stone?" Ling grinned while turning his attention towards me.

"No."

I answered him a lot faster than what I intended too and despite the fact that I admired Ling, I was not about to inform Ling on everything the brothers and I had learned on the Stone. They would get their bodies back before I gave this guy the chance for immortality. Ling's head tilted to the side as thoughts and realizations flooded through his eyes.

"You have…a different energy about you…" He muttered.

My brown eyes widened and his words made me step back. Those exact words had been haunting my memory since Envy had spoken them back in laboratory five.

"What's that mean?"

My question was a demand. Ling had the answers to my questions now and I was ready to go through anything to get it out of him.

"She's none of your concern." Edward spoke suddenly while making advancement toward Ling, but the masked figure with the daggers kicked Edward down like he was a piece of paper.

"Brother!"

However, the man wielding the sword refused to let Alphonse rush to his brother's aid and they were soon wrapped up in their confrontation. Both of the brothers soon ended up on the ground next to each other.

"Geez what are these guys? Some kind of acrobats?" Edward chocked.

"Maybe a Xingese fighting style?"

"They're ninjas!" I laughed lightly while giving them both a hand.

"Even so…they're still not as tough…"

"As teacher!" Alphonse finished.

"You got these two. I'll handle Ling. He's not the one looking for a fight." I stated while the two figures started to race towards us.

"Be careful then."

And with that the four of them vanished behind trails of smoke and sparks of alchemy. Ling's laughter broke through clouds of sand and I remembered the task at hand.

"Off they go." He mused while taking a seat and ordering more food which the restaurant owner was very excited to get for him. Ling was now his number one customer.

"You're going a little overboard on food there don't you think?" I inquired while taking my own seat back.

"Well since Edward is being so kind why not?"

Ling's carefree tone was back. Most likely because he felt that his two guards would get the answers he needed in no time flat. However, he was not aware of whom he was dealing with just yet and that made a small smile form on my thin lips.

"You assume a lot."

Ling choked down his dessert and looked back up into my eyes. Our conversation was about to take a turn and I was ready for it. In fact, I welcomed it with open arms.

"So, where are you from?" He spoke suddenly.

"Excuse me?"

"I have come across a lot of people since I left Xing and you are a lot different from any Amestrian."

"You just got here." I retaliated.

"Even so, there is a difference."

"Explain?"

"Tell me about the Philosopher's Stone then? That sounds like a good trade. An equivalent exchange correct?"

Ling was smart. Anyone could give him that much. He may act like a goofy idiot but I think that was just an act.

"Honestly no. The Philosopher's Stone is a rather huge thing don't you think? Just answering a simple question of mine is not equivalent."

Before I would not have been able to come up with this kind of remark until hours later. The months training with Edward had helped out a lot and I made a note to thank him for it later. Ling smiled and leaned back in his chair with crossed arms. Apparently he was not expecting that kind of answer.

"Good point. Perhaps something else interests you then?"

"Let's just start with my question for now: What do you mean by a different kind of energy?"

Ling smiled and opened his eyes a bit wider so I could now see the dark brown irises that could easily be mistaken for black. He rested his chin on the palm of his hand. It was aching me with the amount of time Ling was wasting.

"The people of Xing…we have this was of sensing people…"

"What does that have to do with anything?"

Ling held up a hand as a signal for me to let him finish.

"The way we sense people is by their auras. When I look around now, I can see every single person's aura that passes by. All of them have their own unique difference yes, but there is a similarity as to whom and what they are…your aura does not have the similarity…in fact it has something entirely different. One which I have never seen before."

I did not know what to say. My mind was filled with all these different thoughts and emotions but deep down it did make sense. Everyone around us had a something in common because there were from the same world. I was not. I sighed and leaned back in my seat. But my thoughts were interrupted when Ling opened his mouth to speak again.

"I may not know much about alchehistory or alchemy in this country's case, but the energy that flows through your aura seems to be the same one used in alchemy."

Now I was truly flabbergasted. That one statement made this whole situation a lot different. The only reason what Ling said made any sense to me because of the knowledge I had of this world. In the future, Edward may, or may not depending on which route this journey takes, enter the gate and come through to my world during World War II. Envy would then inform that people in my world were only meant for energy as transmutations, and since Envy was the one to take notice in my difference in the first place this was not a very good thing.

"Now how about the Philosopher's Stone?" Ling questioned leaning forward more with a bright grin.

"I thought we agreed that your information wasn't enough for mine?" I laughed with crossed arms.

"I thought you might have forgotten…" He pouted.

Two large explosions made both of us rise to our feet and observe the two large clouds of debris spiraling upward.

"It seems like they may be going a bit over board…"

"A bit?"

"Perhaps now is a good time to intervene." Ling skipped on a head towards where all the action was.

"And you call me different." I teased while following him.

"So, think of anything else you want for the information I need?"

"Tell you what Ling: I'll let you know when the time comes. For now, let's just ride this thing out."

"Hm, I guess that's fair."

"Just try not to get too _greedy_ in all of this."

And with that I ran a head with Ling behind and a confused expression written all over his face. Edward, with his automail arm ripped off was soon in my view. The once masked, female, was hanging up in a simple trap. Alphonse came trotting up beside me with his opponent tied up on his shoulder.

"You were getting your asses kicked by an old man and a girl!" I laughed while nudging Edward with an elbow. This was a moment I could not let go.

"Oh shut up! You weren't here to see what she did!" Edward started but soon stopped when the blank looked covered my face. Well of course I had seen it!

"All right! Good job everyone!" Ling shouted.

"What are you so chipper about?" Edward hissed.

"Well, you two have some pretty impressive skills. I know! Come work for me and together we can take over this country!"

"I've had enough of your idiotic chattering! Just go back to Xing."

Edward's ranting was cut short was crowds of the town's people began to form. They were commenting on the destruction that had acured because of the bouts the brothers had encountered with Ling's guards and they were not pleased in the slightest.

"Hey hold on! This guy and his entourage should be paying for the damages!" Edward accused while pointing towards Ling.

"So sorry! I do not understand much language of this country. Ok? Bye-Bye now!"

And with that Ling ran off faster than the speed of light, and his co hearts had unbounded themselves and vanished just as quickly.

"You get the hell back here!"

"Smart guy!" I laughed which only annoyed Edward even farther.

"How am I supposed to fix all of this with one arm?"

"Its okay brother, I'll take care of it."

And with a clap of his hands Alphonse proceeded to fix the destruction.

"You mean you can do alchemy without a transmutation circle now?"

"I think it's because of the memories I recovered."

"This is a skill I need to get in on! Drawing circles takes too long!" I whined.

Edward stepped back a minute and the realization that his brother now had the same skills as he did started to sink in.

"With his height…and skill…now…" Edward let out a defeated cry and fell to the ground.

"Brother?"

"Oh come on now! You're still the great Fullmetal Alchemist." I tried to keep my tone in an uplifting way but I was consumed with laughter.

"Let's get back to Winry. She's probably ready to fix your arm now." Alphonse stated after a bit more clean up.

We were back at Garfiel's shop faster than ever. Probably because there was nothing in the town that would make us slow down. Ling's cheerful grin was the first thing that greeted us since he was sitting at a table with Mr. Garfiel.

"Hello! We meet again!" Ling was still continuing his exaggerated accent.

Edward rushed forward and slammed Ling over the head with unattached automail arm.

"You know people are sent to jail for that kind of thing in my world…" I muttered and Alphonse snickered beside me.

"What the hell is your sorry butt doing here?" Edward shouted.

"Now, now: We're all friends here." Ling sat up while rubbing his injured head. "Hey Serena!" He greeted with a wave.

"Hiya Ling." I skipped over and took a seat while taking the cup of tea Mr. Garfiel offered me.

"What are you two best friends now?" Edward hissed.

"We just had a good conversation while you two were off fighting his ninjas." I laughed.

"Yeah well those two didn't go easy!"

"I'll give them a good talking to later." Ling started. "The girl's name is Lang Fan, and the old man is called Fu. Their family has served mine for generations. As you can tell, they are quiet good at what they do."

"So you shake down strangers for food but you manage to afford two personal attendants?" Edward stated bewildered.

"Well I am the Emperor's son after all."

"Then that makes you….a prince?"

Both Edward and Alphonse broke off into fits of laughter. It was kind of hilarious if you thought about it. When you pictured a prince you always see riches and covered with fine gold, but here Ling was nothing like that image.

"That wasn't the reaction I expected." Ling pouted.

"Get used to it." I yawned.

"I'm sorry we just didn't expect that." Alphonse spoke through laughter.

"Yeah, the son of an emperor collapsed in the street and mooches food off of us is pretty nuts." Edward continued but was cut off by a flying dagger which found its way inches in front of his nose.

"Do not speak to Master Ling that way."

Lang Fan peered through the window and stared dangerously at Edward. He had already started off on the wrong foot with her by insulting her master over and over in their battle moments ago.

"Great to see you…" Edward mumbled.

"No, you're probably right. It's actually not that big a deal. The emperor has a lot of sons. It's like this: My country, Xing, is broken up into fifty different lands with an emperor at the top reigning over all of them. The daughter of each clan's chief becomes one of the emperor's wives and bears his children. The current Emperor has nineteen daughters and twenty-four sons. I come in at number twelve in that line up."

"Forty-three kids? That's incredible!" Edward spoke the shock that all of us were feeling.

"The issue of succession must be a tricky one."

"Indeed it is! That's the problem we're facing right now. The emperors health has begun to deteriorate lately and each clan is doing everything they can to carry favor. And I'm no exception."

"You want to up your chances by discovering the secret to immortality." Edward thought aloud.

"Exactly! So, the Philosopher's Stone! What information can you offer?"

Ling's whole expression changed from serious to his goofy tone we had met at the restaurant.

"Not happening! The stone isn't a tool for some political gain." Edward muttered between clenched teeth.

Ling pranced forward and attached himself around Edward's neck with a large and sheepish grin.

"Ahh! Then I'll have to stay with you until you tell me!" he sang.

Edward shoved him off and slapped Ling around with his automail.

"No you don't! Get off of me you-"

"I'm back! Did you see that? There was some kind of fight on Main Street so it took a while to…"

Winry entered with a box full of supplies and a genuine smile, but it slowly faded as she took in the room around her. Not only was there a foreign person but what mattered more was the completely ripped of arm Edward was shaking around carelessly as a slapping device for Ling.

"What happened to your arm? Edward Elric you careless little jerk!"

Wrenches and other items flew around and found themselves landing on Edward. The rest of us stayed away from Winry's wrath and Ling soon climbed out the window when Fu called for him. After Winry had settled down, she began work on Edward's arm.

"So, where are you off to break your automail this time?"

"You just assume I'll break it?"

"We're thinking about doing some digging back in Central." Alphonse answered.

"You're going to back to Central? Take me with you?" Winry's anger had fully been replaced by pure excitement.

"What do you want to go for?" Edward inquired.

"I'd like to go see the Hughes family again!"

"But don't you have a lot of work to do here?" I asked while winking towards Mr. Garfiel which he acknowledged with a smile.

"It's ok if you want to go Winry. You should take a break every once and awhile." He spoke.

"Okay then we'll all go!"

"Central here we come!" I laughed with a fist punched into the air.

"We're going to Central! How exciting!" Ling said happily while peering in through the window upside down.

"I told you you're not coming with us!"

"Oh come, Ed? It'll be fun!" I begged latching onto his arm.

"Yeah come on!" Ling echoed while latching onto him as well.

"Will you both knock it off?"

"It's not that big of a deal Ed. Besides we might be able to learn something from them and-"

"Well ask him to be your teacher then!"

And with that Edward went marching out of the room. Ling and I were really just joking with Edward. Winry and Alphonse knew that as well so when Edward reacted the he did well it through all of us off.

"What's his problem?" Winry questioned with a brow raised.

I sighed and followed after him. I knew Ling annoyed him but not that much. I found Edward leaning against the shop with a new soda in his hand.

"Heya Ed!" I greeted cheerfully, hoping to earn a smile, but he didn't even turn my way.

I pursed my lips and slid down the wall next to him. Our silent moments were always comfortable ones but right now it was the most uncomfortable I had felt. I looked up at Edward and began to recognize the look which was plastered on him.

Years ago, my mother's brother Jason had come to visit us from Australia. I was young and had so much fun being around him. He did impersonations very well and was all in all great to be around. I always spoke of how "awesome" he was and it soon got on Aaron's nerves. "I thought I was your favorite." He said. We were very young then…and that look Aaron had on his face during that confession was the same Edward had now. Ling was great and everyone seemed to think so and that took some shine away from Edward that he very much enjoyed. I smiled up at him and tugged on his sleeve forcing him to sit down next to me.

"Ninja or not: Nothing compares to the Fullmetal Alchemist." I said staring up at the silver stars.

Edward finally looked at me with a dazed expression. I guess he was not prepared for me to fill his ego.

"Yeah I'm pretty awesome huh?" He considered with a large grin.

Rolling my eyes I elbowed him lightly.

"You adjust fast."

We laughed together and sat outside for awhile losing track of time while we continued to share stories, laugh and even explain difference between worlds. That all eventually ended as we sat in the contented silence staring up at the sky.

"Can I ask you something?" Edward spoke suddenly.

"Sure." I answered slowly.

"Back in lab five…something happened to you."

My body tensed at the memory and since we were so close I assumed he had felt it.

"I may have been out of it, but I saw…part of you disappear."

"I'm not really sure what it's all about. Besides, it only happened once."

Edward shook his head and crossed his arms. He had a look in his eyes that screamed he had secrets up his sleeve and it slightly bothered me.

"Al and I saw it happen when you were sick at Teacher's…you were asleep and your whole body just turned into a ghost."

I did not understand what he was trying to get out of revealing this to me. Yes it was something I needed to know but it was not like I could give him the reasons why.

"You're not…going back to your world…are you?"

That was something I had not taken the time to think about. It did make sense. I had come here out of nowhere. I guess it was possible to return the same way. It was bound to happen at some point. My chest felt heavy at this thought. I wanted to go home eventually. I honestly looked forward to seeing my family again and being with friends, but that meant leaving everyone I met here behind. Would I ever be able to see them again once I was home?

"I dunno…it's gonna happen at some point." I whispered sadly.

"Do you want to go back?"

My head started to pound. This was too much to take in at once and I would have rather been reading an intense alchemy book then figure this one out. I wanted to go home but there was something about Edward asking me if I wanted to or not that made me think otherwise. Turning my gaze to him, I found Edward staring at me. He was waiting for an answer I was reluctant to give.

"I don't know."

It was the honest truth. I was torn between two worlds. One I had lived in my whole life and cherished and this new one I had grown to love. Edward's lips pursed together and he turned away from me once more.

"But, if I have to…saying good-bye is going to be the hardest thing I'll ever have to do. Even if I compare to all the training you've put me through." I admitted with a tiny laugh.

This made a small smile form on his face. Edward let out a sigh and rose to his feet. Giving me his ever growing common, gentle smile, he offered his hand.

"Time to head in?"

I took his hand and felt heat rise in my cheeks. He seemed to notice since he poked my face with a laugh.

"What's that for?"

"Oh shut up…"

"Am I that much of a 'bad ass' now?"

"I said shut up!"

**I had a lot of fun with this! Haha Ling is just a wonderful character and I know a lot of people like him and he is a very skilled fighter haha. So, I made Serena pretty excited about it lol. So, how about some more reviews! I see a lot of you are reading now let me hear…read… your voices! Lol**

**~TwilightRoseAlchemist**


	14. Chapter Thirteen: Sly Dog

**Thank you all for the reviews! I love them very much! **

**So, I will be trying to update as fast as I can. Classes started up again and they require some time, plus I am working a lot since I am going to be moving down too Arizona in the next couple weeks! Sooo, excited! Anyways, here is the next chapter!**

**I DO NOT OWN FULLMETAL ALCHEMIST**

**Chapter Thirteen:**

**Sly Dog**

"We're finally here!"

My arms reached for the sky as fresh air filled my lungs. The journey back to Central was a lot longer than what I had remembered.

"I'm beat…" Edward yawned.

"Being spied on for hours will do that to you." Alphonse inserted.

"Mr. Fu and Lang Fan were keeping eyes on him?" Winry question a little shocked.

I am not sure what was so surprising about it. Ling had jumped on the train with us despite Edward's insisting that he could not. The whole train ride to Central Ling had attempted to get secrets of the stone from the brothers and I, but the whole time he was ignored and that just made him try to get under Edward's skin ever more.

"Where is the young Lord?"

Mr. Fu and Lang Fan looked down at us from on top of the train. For two people who were supposed to be guarding the young prince with their lives, they always lost track of him. Ling had hopped off the train the second it stopped at its destination, and vanished under his guardians noses.

"He's not here." Alphonse informed while looking around for Ling's familiar face.

"Maybe he ran off again." Winry noted.

The two ninjas, as I continued to call them, sighed with disbelief and muttered obscurities under their breath. In seconds they bounced all over the station calling out for their young Lord in hopes that he would answer or appear to them.

"What if he's collapsed somewhere again?" Lang Fan spoke with so much worry in her voice that you could tell how much she cared for Ling. He was more than just a prince that she needed to protect.

"If so, good riddance." Edward muttered while making his leave. "Let's go."

Alphonse, Winry and I followed Edward but we also watched the two warriors search for their royal. It must have been a pain to have such a burden as protecting someone who did not want to be protected.

Once we were outside the train station, the busy city life greeted us instantly. People calling for cabs rushing to their jobs, teenagers roaming around with their friends looking for a good time, and children running through the streets dodging cars just to chase after a ball they had let loose. It was too loud for me. Lang Fan and Fu's shouts behind us just added to it.

"All right, we're gonna start at the military offices." Edward finally spoke.

"In that case, I'm going to go to the Hughes's house now that I'm in town. I can't wait to see Mrs. Gracia and cute Elisia!" Winry smiled.

"I'm gonna go with Winry. Not like I have much to do with the military." I laughed while latching onto Winry's arm which she laughed at.

"Sounds good. We shouldn't be that far behind you." Edward smiled.

Winry and I ran off after that. This was the first time I had spent away from the Elric brothers, except for the time when Edward ran off after Greed. I do not count that one. Ever since I had come into this world I had been with them. It was a little strange and unnerving at the same time. They had made being here easy. But either way, I was grateful for Winry. She was a lot like Jessica in some ways and that eased some of the home sickness I felt sometimes.

"You know, I have been practicing making apple pie ever since I had tried Mrs. Hughes," Winry started while stopping in front of an apple vender.

"I want to make it for the Hughes so they can tell me if it's any good or not."

The last time I was in Central, Hughes had been very generous to me. It was right after the run in with Scar. We were going to leave for Risembool the next day and he would not have us staying at a hotel so we were at his house faster than I remember. Mrs. Gracia had made her apple pie that night, and I have to say it was the best! I always looked forward to Christmas because my aunt would make her apple pie that just made your mouth water and that was just from the aromas. Once it hit your tongue it was a whole other story, but Gracia's apple pie made you want to cry in sheer delight.

"I'm looking forward to that!" I sighed at the wonderful memory.

After the apples had been purchased we continued our journey to the Hughes's home. With each step I took I observed everyone. It was odd. I was in a completely different world but all of the people around me were no different than those I saw in my own world. We were all people. Sure this world had alchemy and it was a little more mystical than mine, but people lived, fell in love, and raised their children just the same. It was truly amazing. A red ball rolled in front of us and came to a stop at a telephone booth. I smiled while Winry took the ball into her hands and handed it to the small children that stopped before us with ragged breaths. They said their thanks and raced off, but that joy I was feeling by watching these young ones slowly disappeared as the phone booth seemed to be glaring at me. Even though there was not a single cloud in the blue sky, the phone booth spread darkness out around this one area.

"You alright?"

Winry's voice broke my gaze and I weakly forced a smile across my face.

"Let's hurry. I'm really excited to see them."

It was a partial lie. I was looking forward to seeing them again, but mostly I wanted to get rid of the heaviness that had overtaken my body. My heart was filled with an emotion that I was not used to. I could only hope that my warning was enough.

"We're almost there. They live in that building across the street." She smiled and raced away.

I quickly followed her and once we were inside I almost ran towards the stairs as if it would have been faster than the elevator. It may not have been since the Hughes lived on the top floor, but it would have at least felt like I was moving faster than waiting as the elevator moved. Despite all of this we were standing outside the Hughes's door and were waiting for someone to answer Winry's knock. The door creeped open and a small blonde child peeked out with a large smile.

"Daddy?"

Little Elisia looked passed us and then up at Winry with tears forming in her eyes. She ran forward and wrapped her arms around Winry's legs since that was as far as her little body would let her reach. Gracia soon appeared behind the small child with a weary smile…and that was when I knew…Hughes was gone….

My mind would not let me register everything else that had happened after Gracia welcomed us into her home. All I could think about was the small little girl, who was asleep in Winry's arm, which was now growing up without her father that held her as high as a regal queen. Why had he not listened to me? Yes, what Hughes had uncovered was very important but could he not get involved? The brothers, no everyone, would have figured out the dark truth eventually. He did not need to die. Why did he not listen to me?

By now, Edward and Alphonse must have heard of Maes Hughes fate. By now, Edward was blaming himself for what happened. A small knock on the door confirmed that. Gracia led Edward and Alphonse in the room. All of us could feel the grief and guilt radiating from the brothers.

"Mrs. Gracia, there is something I need to talk to you about…if I may." Edward spoke softly.

"About Maes?"

"Right…you too Winry."

I knew what Edward was about to admit and I honestly did not want to sit and listen to any of it. I just wanted to leave room. There was too much sadness in this house and I could not stand it anymore.

"Excuse me…" I whispered while making my way out.

I heard Alphonse call for me but I just ignored it. I do not know where I was going to go but as long as it was not near the Hughes's house. I remember when my brother and I had witnessed Hughes's death on the TV, and it was something that made my eyes water, but what I was feeling now was far more than empathy for a character. I had met the man. He was not some fictional character anymore. He was a living, breathing person who was murdered.

I do not know how I found myself at the cemetery since I still did not know how to lead myself around this city yet, but either way I was glad. It took me a while to find Maes's head stone. There were so many people. Some children, other older people who had died peacefully, and those who had lost their lives as soldiers.

I sat down before his head stone and let the tears finally flow down my face. I new found hate for the homunculus Envy rose in my chest and from this anger formed and my eyes glared at the grey headstone.

"Why didn't you just listen?"

My voice sounded so sharp that it surprised me. I was sad yes, but there was so much anger in my voice. More than I had intended.

"What about your family?"

It was stupid for me to be asking these questions but I was almost hoping that someone would answer me. That Hughes would appear and have a logical explanation for all of this but there was nothing but the small rustle in the trees from a light breeze.

"You knew this man?"

Hairs rose on the back of my neck and I immediately rose to my feet. I could tell from the tone of the voice that it was a man. The person before me was covered in a tattered, grey cloak. The hood was rose up so I could not see the man's face from the shadows the sun light created.

"He was a great man…" I spoke a little cautious.

This man was either someone who knew Hughes or he was just a person I could not trust. He took a few steps toward me and I responded by stepping back.

"I saw you…traveling with the Fullmetal Alchemist."

This was a bit too much for me and I had to admit I was slightly afraid. I knew how to defend myself now if this man wanted to try anything but that does not mean I was fearless. It was intimidating to have someone know who you are and not be able to see their face.

"Please," His voice was so pleading that my guard dropped as he stepped forward slowly once more and reached out with one hand.

"Give this to this man's family…and this one to the Fullmetal. Please."

There were two white envelopes reached out towards me and each one of them was labeled for their perspective people. Hesitantly, I took them from him and give him my word that they would reach the people they were intended for. The cloaked man nodded and began to leave.

"Who are you?" I called out, but he never answered me.

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

I sat next to Alphonse with my legs crossed while I listened to Gracia encourage the brothers to continue their journey. I found myself in this spot just like I had the cemetery. My feet carried me there.

"Even if the Philosopher's Stone is a dead end there may still be another way."

Gracia's smile was so kind and sincere I wanted to know how she could manage it. Her husband was gone but she still shed a light around her. I could see why Hughes loved her so much.

"You boys keep moving forward. Anyway way you can."

With those words Edward rose to his feet and said that we would be leaving. With those words Gracia had spoken, it gave Edward even more incentive to make sure that his goal was accomplished. Hughes's death would not be in vein. As I rose to my feet my hand came into contact with the letters in my pocket.

"Mrs. Hughes…a man gave me this at Mr. Hughes's grave…he wanted me to give this to you."

I handed it to her gently and she started at the envelope in wonder and even surprise. In fact, for a moment I thought I saw a glimpse of familiarity flash in her eyes.

"Who gave it to you?" Alphonse inquired.

"I couldn't see his face…and he didn't tell me."

We bid our goodbyes and slowly made our way out the door. We were filled with so much grief that we did not want to do anything. Just sit and stare out at the vast world and be alone in the thoughts that filled our minds. As Edward shut the door, Elicia's pleas for her mother's tears to cease filled our ears. Edward's eyes shut tight and his hands shook.

"Pack your things sweetie. We're moving."

All of our eyes widened at Gracia's words. My head dropped and all I could gaze at were my own two feet. I racked my brain for answers but I could not remember any single moment when Gracia and her daughter decided to move. What was going on?

~.~.~.~.~

Winry and I sat in our shared room in silence. Neither of us had spoken a word since we left the Hughes's home. Her face was buried into a pillow as she cried silently. I could not find it in myself to shed anymore tears. Letting out a sigh I rose to my feet and made my way to the door.

"I'm going to get some food. Want me to bring you something?" I asked softly.

Winry raised her tear stained face and shook her head slowly.

"Thank you though." She stuttered slightly.

Giving a weak smile, I left the room. I head small sounds of Alphonse's armor in his and Edward's room. Staring at their door I slowly found the motive to move again. They had been through so much pain already and losing Hughes because he dug into their research only seemed to make things worse. How they managed to stay strong through all of these things was beyond me. Coming down to the cafeteria, my eyes found Edward sitting by himself with his head buried in his hands. Coming closer I saw a plate of untouched food in front of him.

"Hey Ed." I greeted while taking a seat across from him.

His exhausted golden eyes met mine and I conjured up the best smile I could. I was here in this world to help them. I had to do the best I could to shed some light in the darkest hours. Just like Gracia had done for us.

"This was my fault…" He whispered.

"You can't blame yourself for everything Ed. Hughes made his own choice. He wanted to help."

"I guess…"

Back in my world, I was usually the person my friends came to whenever they needed advice or help in areas and I had no problem giving them answers but in this moment I was at a loss for words. What could I possibly say that would make this situation better? Nothing. Sometimes silence was the best thing. So we just sat there. Both of us picked at our meals time to time but there was no reason for eating right now. The hunger was not there. Edward looked up at me and let out a forced smile, but it was a smile none of the less.

"Let's head up. I wanna make sure Winry eats something."

Nodding in agreement I followed but left him and Winry alone to talk to each other. She needed her best friend to comfort her right now.

"How are you holding up Al?"

"I…Well….I just can't believe he's gone."

Again I was a loss for words. Apologies and encouraging words just did not seem to cut it. I sat by the window and stared up at the sky. Even the stars seemed to lack their shine tonight. Turning my gaze down to the streets, a familiar tattered grey cloak surprised me. The man I had met at the cemetery was standing outside gazing up. It was almost like he knew I was there which seemed highly unlikely since this was a large hotel built for the military. My hands reached for letter I had not given to Edward yet. A part of me wanted to read it but I stopped myself. It would not have been right.

I looked down at the man once more only to find him gone. I scowered nearby areas but he was nowhere in sight. Who was this man? My thoughts were broken as Edward entered the room with a heavy sigh. Reaching for the letter once more I questioned if now was a good time to be handing it to him. I did not know if it was going to be something that only made this day worse, but I guess now was a good time then. Might as well get it all over with now. Like a band aid.

"I'm gonna go talk to Winry now." Alphonse stated while exiting the room.

Edward flopped down on the coach with a grunt and covered his face with his arms.

"Ed, the man who gave me the letter for Gracia gave me one for you too."

Lowering the mask he created out of his arms, his brow raised in question but he held out his hand as I handed the white envelope to him.

"Do I know him?" He asked me.

"How should I know? I couldn't see his face."

"Well, you're supposed to know these things, right?"

This was true. Everything about my time here had been familiar to me up until now. First it was the cloaked man at the cemetery, the notes, Gracia and Elicia moving…none of this was what I had seen. Something was changing and I wished I knew what it was. Knowing what the future held was nice for a change. We are always living our lives and hoping that each decision led to a promising future. Knowing what was to come in this world brought a comfort and I should not have become so accustomed to it like I had. Life was not meant to be lived that way after all.

"I'm sorry Ed…but this is new to me. That man and these letters did not happen when I saw it." I muttered while he tore open the envelope.

I watched as Edward read the letter. I leaned forward trying to see what was written when surprise filled his eyes. I could not see anything though. Only the length of it and from the amount of time Edward was spending reading it, I could only guess that he was rereading it many times. The suspense was starting to kill me inside. A large smile filled Edward's face suddenly as his eye locked with mine. This smile was different than the ones I had seen today. It was true. It was not forced or filled with some sadness. He was experiencing some form of joy and it was because of that letter which he had dropped. Edward pushed himself off the coach and threw his arms around me. The air I had in my lungs was suddenly shoved out and I could not take in anymore.

"E-Ed?"

He finally let me go and reached for the fallen paper once more and handed it to me but before I could read it I was being drug down the hall and out into the cool air.

"We have to hurry." He called out finally.

"What about Winry and Alphonse?"

"Just read the letter." Edward demanded.

"I can't with you dragging me!"

"There isn't time to read it now though."

"Well make up your mind!"

I was truly becoming annoyed. There was so much sadness in Edward moments before that you could almost see the dark rain cloud floating above his head but now all of that had vanished. The answer to that was held tightly in my hand but I could not read it at this moment. The cool air stung my arms and I could feel the chills running through my body. I was truly overjoyed when we had stopped finally stopped at it was somewhat warmer. We were at the train station and I looked at Edward with question. A child's laughter filled my ears and we both turned in time to see little Elicia and her mother boarding the train. I gripped Edward's arm once I noticed the cloaked man following behind them.

"Ed, that's the guy who gave me the letters." I hissed but he only smiled and pulled me closer to the train. We stopped where many others were crowded to bid goodbye to those they knew boarding the train.

"Read the letter." Edward smiled while searching the train. Most likely for Gracia and her daughter.

I bit my lip and pointed at a window where I had spotted Gracia smiling out at us. Elicia smiled and reached out for the cloaked man that sat before her. When she was nestled into the man, he looked out at us and lifted his head high enough for the few lamp posts that lit up the area to reveal portions of his face.

Edward grinned and held a hand high and gave a small wave. My eyes were stilled locked onto the familiar sight I was seeing from this man. He gave a gentle wave and a smile I could never forget. The train's whistle blew loudly while Edward shoved the letter in my face, but the tears that had begun to cloud my eyes made reading it near impossible.

_Edward,_

_Be careful. There is so much going on in the military that you would not expect. _

_But whatever happens do not give up. You're on the right track kid._

_The day you were leaving, Serena rushed off the train with pleas_

_For me to stay home. To be with my daughter. How could I refuse_

_Such a thing, but still I had to do what I did. I went to work that night,_

_But I was prepared. Something in your friend's cries made me cautious,_

_So I packed a little extra protection on me. Turns out, someone wanted me dead._

_It was best for them to think they had succeeding which is why even my own wife_

_And darling Elicia believes I am dead, unless they have already gotten my letter to them. _

_At first I did not know how I was going to get this news to you and my wife without anyone_

_Finding me, but when I saw Serena at my grave I knew that was my best option._

_I am alive Edward. Continue your journey and keep your mind open. We will meet again and I _

_Will be prepared to help you when the time is right. For now, I am taking my wife _

_and daughter out the country where we can stay hidden. Besides, Elicia's birthday is coming up _

_soon and I have to do something really amazing! Isn't she just adorable? _

_Take care kid._

_~Maes Hughes_

I laughed lightly while I tried to wipe away the tears that still wanted to flow down. The train started to depart and I chased after it until the station floor ended and waved to the entire Hughes family with a smile and tears now flowing freely down my face.

"You sly dog!" I laughed

Edward stood behind with his smile still intact. The train was now well out of our sight and the many others who were there to wish their loved ones off had long took their leave but Edward and I still stood there as if we could still see Hughes and his family.

"Everything I had tried to stop in this world still ended up happening no matter what I did, but it happened in a different way" I started wiping the tears away. "Hughes still died…but in a different way."

We remained there for a little while longer until one question finally sprouted.

"What are we going to tell Winry and Alphonse?" I asked.

"For now we need to play things off before we read that note. When we are out of this city…it'll be safe to talk about it."

I nodded in agreement and returned his soft smile.

**I had to keep Hughes alive! Haha! Sorry but his death sucked! However, I am keeping him alive but dead at the same time so things can continue on the same path. Hope you all enjoy this! I know it was long in the angst part but Hughes's death was a huge impact. Anyways, review please! I am working on the next chapter already.**


	15. Chapter Fourteen: All Good Things

**I cannot express how excited and happy I am to see all the reviews! Thank you all so much! I'm glad that keeping Hughes alive pleased you all. And yes, that is not the last we see of Hughes in this story.**

**IMPORTANT: This will be the last chapter for a little while. At least two weeks. Maybe less. I am leaving Monday to drive to Arizona for my move and it is a hell of a drive lol. Once I am there I need to make an appointment for my internet connection haha. I will be writing during the time though so once I have internet again you may get more than one chapter haha. Anyways, I hope you enjoy this one. It is kind of short. Doing some relationship building and getting to the main action. **

**I do not own Fullmetal Alchemist.**

**Chapter Fourteen:**

**All Good Things..**

"What the hell Al?"

I let out a long exasperated sigh and threw myself on the couch while Edward continued to shout about Alphonse's battered appearance. Edward and I had just returned from a forced trip to Risembool with Major Armstrong. I tried to get out of it since I knew the real journey was to the ruins of Xerxes. However, the Major insisted that I went a long and I was not going to try and say no to the likes of him.

However, it turned out that the journey was not to reveal that Maria Ross was not murdered. In fact, she was not even blamed for the death of Hughes. Mustang was being the 'good dog' he needed to be and was not looking for anything behind the militaries back. Actually, Mustang had 'magically' come up with some information about Xerxes. Edward and I had a small hunch that Hughes may have played a part in this. Perhaps we were not the only ones who were given secret notes. At least, I hoped so.

"How was the fight with Lust?" I laughed while Alphonse attempted to attach his arm and Edward turned to me with narrowed slits for eyes.

"You knew about this?"

Rolling my eyes I grabbed a pillow and tossed it at him.

"When are you going to get over that?"

Edward just mumbled words under his breath while he clapped his hands and repaired his broken brother. It was truly amazing what these two were capable of. Yes, when you watch them in action you think "Awesome," but now after enduring hours and hours of alchemy training I could see their talent for what it was truly worth. I envied them a little sometimes. Drawing transmutation circles has gotten easier but it is still time consuming and not very efficient when dangers arise.

"All right, I need to be leaving now."

Winry came bouncing in with a small smile while she held her luggage. I pouted and slumped down in my seat even further. Everything just seemed to keep moving in this world. There was no getting back from school, take a five hour break and even procrastinate your homework that was due the very next morning. We were constantly moving. There was no such thing as a vacation.

"That's right. You have work in Rush Valley don't you?" Alphonse inquired.

Winry nodded happily. She was having so much success and many people needed her help. You could tell that this was something that truly made her happy.

"We'll see you off then."

I raised one brow in confusion at Edward's comment. On the train ride back to Central Edward had informed me of his plan to lure out the homunculi by engaging Scar. After all, Scar wanted nothing more than Edward to be bleeding on the pavement and the homunculi needed him alive. It was the perfect plan. After Edward had his automail destroyed by Scar in our last run in, Edward said he was lucky that Winry was around just in case, but now he was letting her leave without even mentioning a single thing…what other kind of surprises was I going to see?

Before long, Winry was leaning her blonde head out the train window with a smile.

"Don't be strangers and come visit soon." She said.

After a few goodbyes and a hissing train whistle we turned our backs and began our leave...

"Serena wait a second!"

A little confused I answered Winry's call by rushing back to the window before the train began to depart.

"Watch over them." She whispered with a gentle smile. Winry's eyes shifted and I followed her gaze to Edward and then looked back with questioning eyes.

"You should tell him too."

My eyes widened while I felt heat rush and fill every inch of my face. I could tell exactly what she was thinking by the glint in her eyes and the devious smile that crossed her face. The train started to pull away but I was still frozen in my spot. Winry's laughter pulled me out of the daze and I returned her wave.

"What did she say?" Alphonse inquired innocently.

"Just girl talk."

The heat in my face had still not left and words just seemed to be leaving my mouth on auto pilot.

~.~.~.~.~.~.~

"And don't forget; I'm your friendly neighborhood State Alchemist, Edward Elric!"

My eyes watered while I laughed and clenched the table we sat at. Edward crossed his arms and a smug, prideful smile rested on his face.

"And that's your plan to get the homunculi's attention tomorrow?" Alphonse asked with surprised in his voice.

"Of course!"

My laughter continued and it only earned Edward's narrowed eyes. Taking a large breath and wiping the tears away, I leaned back in my seat with a sheepish grin.

"Priceless Edward Elric plan." I dubbed.

Edward nodded and stuck his nose in the air with pride. He took my comment as a compliment. What I really meant was classic Edward moment when he makes everything too flashy and goes a little over board. But, whatever floated his boat at the moment was okay by me.

"Well, I guess if we get to help people too it's good." Alphonse said happily.

"And him pouncing around like Spider-Man is a plus for my entertainment." I giggled.

I earned two very confused expressions and I tried to explain the masked hero to them as best as I could but they could not fathom someone shooting webs out of their wrists even though I told them he was a fictional character. Then again, here I was having lunch with two people I believed to be fictional….there is a thought for you….I do not think I would look at Batman the same again.

Small, child like laughter filled my ears and I turned away from the brothers' to see a line of girls running around in tutus. From the looks of it, they had just finished their class but they still pranced around happily. I smiled softly and leaned my head on the palm of my hand and continued to watch them. My smile slowly turned while a heavy rock filled my stomach.

"What are you looking at Serena?" Alphonse asked breaking me from my thoughts.

"Just them." I whispered pointing to the tiny girls across the street.

"That's stupid." Edward laughed. I smiled and lightly punched his arm.

"Hey, dance is actually pretty cool once you get past the basics." I defended.

"And you know this….how?" Edward inquired with bored eyes.

"As a matter of fact, my best friend and I are planning on going to New York after High School for dance so shut it."

Edward's teasing smile dropped and he turned away from he with almost a cold stare.

"So, are you still going to try and go home?" Alphonse piped up.

"Why wouldn't I?" I questioned slowly and almost too soft to be heard.

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~

I yawned and the paper before me blurred slightly. We had been at our hotel for the last few hours and the silence between us was too uncomfortable for me so I had retreated to practicing drawing transmutation circles. With my mind occupied I would not be focusing on the fact that Edward was not speaking and Alphonse prying to get his brother to say something.

I loud grunt above me caused my skin to nearly jump off my bones. I stared up at Edward's disapproving eyes.

"Your alchemy isn't going to improve if you keep drawing it like that." He muttered before snatching my pen away and proceeding to add to the circle.

He showed me the finished product and my brain felt like it was just splattered all over the wall. The designs he added were so intricate and precise that the hope of achieving something like it was thrown out the window. He gave my pen back and ordered me to try again. Most of my lessons were like this. There was no "time to learn," or any warning. It just happened. I looked at the circle Edward had completed and attempted to copy but I soon gave a defeated sigh and tossed the utensil aside.

"This is stupid." I muttered.

Edward laughed lightly and handed me the pen. He took my hand in his own and helped me draw the circle much like he had the very first time. The icy touch of his automail made me flinch slightly.

"Sorry." He whispered and pulled away once the circle was finished.

"It's ok really." I smiled.

It was not like he had a choice anyways. I wrote with my right hand. He could not use his left to help me. It would not have worked properly and the circle would have looked like a small child had scribbled all over the paper.

"This circle should work a lot better for you." Alphonse spoke while appearing next to us with a small white box in his hands.

I looked at Edward for answers and he just smiled and turned to his younger brother who handed me the box.

"And so should this." Alphonse finished.

Giving the brothers' questioning glances, I turned down the box and lifted it. Inside, two white gloves lay nestled together and black lining was embroidered in each glove. Pulling them out of their confinement, I found the design to be two circles that Edward had just shown me. My face lit up with a large smile while I pulled them on and jumped to my feet.

"It was Al's idea." Edward spoke suddenly and crossed his arms.

"But brother-"

"Now whenever trouble comes you won't be in the way as much."

Leave it to Edward to mask up a nice gesture. Alphonse sighed and shook his head before taking clanking steps away from us.

"Whatever. Just watch me pass you up with these." I said holding my fists up.

Edward raised his brow and scoffed before shaking his head.

"Like that'll happen."

I pouted and slid down in my seat. He was right after all. I contemplated saying some kind of insult but everything I conjured up locked tight in my throat when I saw Edward's expression change drastically.

"What's up?" I asked while he sighed.

"Isn't all this what you wished for?" Edward whispered.

I smiled softly and gave a curt nod.

"But so much better."

"Then why would you want to leave?"

My dropped and a small flare of anger filled my veins. How could he ask me something like that? Was it not obvious? I had a family and life I needed to get back to. When I made the wish I did not intend for it to last forever. It could not be that way.

"It's not like you've tried to get home anyways."

I leaned against the window with a glare and turned away from him. His words stung so much because they were true. My whole plan from the start was to join the Elric brothers' in hopes that I could find a way home, but the entire time I had not once lifted a finger in that effort.

"Anyway I could convince you otherwise?"

I turned to him with my glare replaced with question only to see his eyes to be soft and a smile that was forcing itself to be happy.

"That's not fair Ed." I smiled. "But I guess this world is not as different and it does have its perks. I wouldn't have to go to school every day here so that means no late nights doing homework. Winry is so much like Jessica in my world. Al, you remind me of Aaron but a lot sweeter. And Izumi's like my mother so I guess it would me like home…" I mused.

But there was so much more to it than…

"But…truth is…not matter how many similarities there are it's not the same. You both have dreams. You want your bodies back. I'm here to help you with that but back home I have my own dreams I want to accomplish too…my brother is older than me but he still needs me around. Someone has to help him act right at his wedding. Jessica and I are going to dance together and my father and mother need a daughter…"

"You can't just leave them behind." Alphonse spoke with understanding.

I nodded with a sad smile and stared down at my hands. Of course Alphonse would be the first to understand this. Well, I'm sure Edward did too but there was something about him knowing this truth that made me feel like a terrible person. Maybe I should have lied…no, that would not have been the best idea. It sounded good though since it looked like I was about to get another silent treatment. I looked up at Alphonse with a sheepish smile and he only giggled and walked out of the room. He understood what needed to be done.

Facing away from Edward I leaned my back against his. This was our common position whenever we were looking through research or it was one of my lessons.

"You're angry with me?" It was more of a statement than it was a question.

"What's the equivalence is this? You just dropped into our lives and then vanish later?"

I sighed and shook my head in response.

"Not everything in life is like alchemy, Ed."

I could see his eyes roll even though I could not see his face.

"Sometimes, things just happened and you can't explain them. It's life. Not a science book."

He did not answer me after that. Most likely because he was letting his mind think over what I had said. Everything the brothers' looked at was equivalent exchange. It was the very building block in how life flowed.

The weight of Edward leaning against my back lessened and transferred to my hand when I felt a small squeeze. My face flushed upon realization that it was because of Edward's hand. My heat skipped a beat while looking back into his soft eyes.

"I guess that explains a few things." He muttered.

"Well, if there is any equivalence, I can go back to my world not being an idiot at science anymore." I laughed while keeping my eyes down on our enclosed hands.

He laughed in response and leaned his back closer against mine.

"Yeah, you were pretty stupid."

"Hey!"

This is what I really appreciated about Edward. Just seconds ago my heart was heavy and now it was lifted higher while those poignant thoughts were replaced by the sounds of laughter. I tilted my head back and stared at his golden eyes which were looking back through his peripheral. That high feeling my chest was flying on started to fill with something else. It was slightly heavier but it was something I would want to carry…and I could see that same emotion livened in his eyes as well.

He was leaning closer. I shut my eyes tight and bit my lip. This was not good. I could not be feeling this way. It would make things much more difficult. Alphonse was like the little brother I never had and that was going to be hard enough to let go of as it is. What was I going to do when I had to let go of Edward too…my eyes fluttered open when his forehead pressed against mine but it was quickly gone as fast as it had come.

His sudden standing motion almost had me crashing backwards. Taking in a ragged breath I looked up to see him facing away from me. It felt like hours before he finally turned around with a very determined look in his eyes.

No words needed to be spoken between us. There was enough understand we had learned from each other to know. A silent confession….there would be no goodbyes between us.

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~

**One Year Later**

Ling Yao and I stared down at the city of Lior with small grins. Edward was already in the city running after his younger brother. Ling and I's mission was to find Scar before he could turn the whole city into a Philosopher's Stone. We could see the transmutation circle designed through the whole town from our perch.

"One more thing to add to my list." Ling laughed…but his voice was different than the Ling I had met one year ago. It was stronger and gruff. This only meant that the man standing next to me now was not Ling…but Greed.

"I thought I told you not to get greedy." I smirked.

Greed turned his large grin to me and clenched his fist tight. Ling accepted becoming the homunculi Greed in order to achieve immortality. My hair, which had grown significantly, whipped around my face as a dark wind approached.

"Time to get moving." I said while reaching for the white gloves the brothers' had given to me.

Once we started our entrance into the city a familiar sense began to over take me. My eyes grew heavy and my vision blurred ever slow slightly. Greed's hands reached out for me as I felt myself stumbling forward.

"You ok, kid?" This voice was soft. Ling was in control now.

Letting the feeling pass, I smiled up at him and continued forward. Over the past few months these things had become a regular acurance. I was tired almost all of the time now. It felt like a part of me was disappearing…

"You're going to vanish on us are you? They still need you."

The truth was I probably should have returned home weeks ago. I was fighting with every inch of my soul to see this journey through to the end. I was not going to leave until it was finished and I could see Alphonse's human face. But it was physically draining. I was losing the energy.

Kimbley came out of a nearby building with a maniacal grin.

"Isn't the sound of the explosions amazing." He mused before slamming his explosive hands down to the ground.

Ling's eyes lit up with excitement as Greed once more took over. Stretching out my arms, the circles intricately woven on my gloves gave off a soft glow.

"You'll like the sound of this even more." I spat while shoving my hands down as well.

I was actually going to miss this…My time here was coming to an end…

**Like I said kind of a filler chapter. This one is mostly dedicated to their relationship and building it. I had to skip a head because if I did every single episode than this story would be over 100 chapters or so haha. **

**I know some of you want Serena to stay and I am trying to make her as realistic as possible. Think of it this way: If YOU were in another world away from all your family and friends, could you choose to just leave them behind? Something like that would be really had especially if you were falling in love. Haha. So I try to make this real and not just "I'll stay with you!" Kind of thing. Also, trying to keep Edward in character. He won't just say he likes her. Very cryptic like. **

**Also! Last chapter for a while. Maybe! I am starting the next one now and maybe I can get it out before I start my move on Monday. Moving just takes a lot of work lol. **

**Thank you so much to all of you who reviewed again! It means a lot to me to see how much you all like it. Especially since I chose to rewrite this. **


	16. Chapter Fifteen:More than we bargained

**One more chapter for you all before the move! This is the only time I will have to get it out to you! So I hope you enjoy it! **

**Chapter Fifteen: **

**More than we bargained for**

"Give me a break!" I shouted while transmuting a large wall to shield us from debris that Kimblee created. I was protecting myself mostly. Ling's new 'body' was indestructible.

"You should go catch up to Ed. I can handle this one better than you." Ling spoke with a glint in his eyes.

"But I'm just starting to have fun." I laughed.

Quickly activating my transmutation circles, I pressed my palms to the wall and watched as it turned into an icy block. Ling confirmed Kimblee's presence on the other side. We both knew this man was "boom crazy," as I called him, and once he used the wall as material for an explosion he would get the rough end of it since I changed the composition the wall was made of. As in on cue, Ling and I launched ourselves behind a convenient store while the explosion commenced. After the debris cleared, Kimblee stumbled with icy spikes fixed into various parts of his body.

"What was that about you being better?" I grinned.

I know this was a very serious situation but being around the Elric brothers had taught me that the best way to handle it was through being a smart ass…okay that was mostly Edward I had learned that from.

"As wonderful as that was; get going."

Greed was back again. And I could tell by his twitching hands, which turned into a dark shield that crawled up his arms, that he was excited with the battle he was about to finish. As much as I enjoyed using my now better alchemy skills, Greed was right. We did not have time for both of us to be held back by Kimblee. One of us needed to catch up with Edward and assist him before the transmutation circle was activated. We needed enough time to escape the city should that arise. Nodding, I sprinted as fast as I could and listened to Greed's laughter and Kimblee's screams slowly fade off into the distance.

Lior was scolding hot. Every breath I took felt like I was breathing in fire. It was warm enough that I could almost see the heat radiating off the ground bellow my feet. How I would have loved to be in Risembool right now and laying against the cool grass, but I needed to keep my mind on finding Alphonse and Edward. Maybe after all of this was through, a vacation to Risembool would be our reward. Sounds like a good goal too have in mind.

Searching the city for my short tempered companion was taking a lot longer than I thought. What happened to just running around for a few minutes and then finding who you are looking for like in the movies? I guess they took out the length of it just to keep your hopes high whenever you had to do something similar. Finally, Edward's figure came into view. He had ditched his reed coat a long time ago and now only stood dressed in his black tank and pants.

"Ed!"

I stopped beside him and took deep breaths while leaning down and resting my hands on my knees. I took this moment of rest to search the area for Alphonse but he was not standing anywhere in sight.

"Where's Al?" I breathed.

I looked up at him to notice the despair written all over his face. He was staring off into the vast open desert.

"Edward?"

"The circle is wrong."

I stared down at the deeply dug lines that I knew connected all across the city. From when Ling and I stood the hill outside the city, the circle looked very well perfect. What could be wrong with it?

"This transmutation circle is just a distraction."

The young voice of May Chang, who had joined our journey months ago, spoke up and Edward and I gave the small warrior our full attention. The look on Edward's face told me he knew everything May was about to say and she was just informing me.

"All of Amestris is a transmutation circle for the Philosopher's Stone." She said while holding up countless papers of alchemy research. "These are Scar's brother's notes. and I deciphered them." She finished. I let out a huge sigh and ran my fingers through my hair.

"I thought you would have known this." Edward muttered to me and I only shook my head in response.

"Not everything is flowing right anymore. This whole journey has taken a different turn. Besides, I haven't seen this far into your 'series' back home. I'm just as much in the dark as you are now." I whispered.

"So, all of Amestris is going to be used as material for a Philosopher's Stone?" I asked aloud.

May Chang nodded and dug through more of the papers before she finally pulled out one and handed it to Edward.

"But with this circle, we can counter it."

I glanced over Edward's shoulder and stared down at the unfamiliar design. It was nothing I had seen in alchemy before which only means that it must be some form of alchehistory. I scrunched my nose and leaned away with my arms crossed.

"So coming to Lior was basically some wild goose chase!" I hissed.

Edward nodded with equal frustration on his face.

"Okay seriously, where's Al?" I asked again, scanning the area.

"With Hoenhiem." Edward spat.

I rolled my eyes at his anger towards his father. He had every right to be angry with him of course. But I did not believe that now was the time to be visibly holding grudges against a man who was your father. We had a whole country to worry about now.

"Brother!"

I smiled at May as she launched herself on Alphonse who had came racing towards us. It was no secret to see how much May was fond of him. At first, she had a huge desire to meet the Fullmetal Alchemist. She had this image in her mind of a much taller, and gentleman figure of Edward but once she saw the real man, May was falling for the younger brother, which was a lot better for me honestly.

"What's going on Al?" I asked.

"Dad told me something. The homunculi's father is planning something awful!" He cried.

"What is it?" May questioned clinging onto Alphonse.

"The Promised Day."

All of us gazed at Alphonse in confusion. That bit of information had not made any sense and it only added on to the mysteries we had just found.

"Leave me to fight and you all have a party. That's not fair."

Greed stalked his way next to us with a large grin.

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~

"Scar's on our side now?" I inquired very surprised.

We were on the first train back to Central as soon as humanly possible. From everything Alphonse had informed us about, the creator of all the homunculi was staging an all out war in the spring. From there he would activate his transmutation circle which was being created under ground as we spoke, and use the stone to become stronger than God himself. All of this seemed so farfetched that it was hard to take in. On top of all this, Scar had tattooed his left arm with the transmutation circles of creation which now made him a full alchemist, and he was rallying up Ishbalans to help save the country.

"As crazy as that sounds, how are we going to get this alchehistory circle made in time to stop them?" Alphonse brought up.

"Leave that to me and Scar." May smiled with victory.

We had three months to get that transmutation made across the entire country or else thousands of people would die. I stared at Alphonse grateful that he was not turned into the Philosopher's Stone like I was expecting, but it would have been so much easier to protect him from Envy and his group. However, we still had a stone in our possession now.

Turns out, Kimblee was carrying a Philosopher's Stone with him. It was not the full fledged stone, but it was enough that could help out the brothers' significantly. Greed was the one to find it and he was all for keeping it for himself but much thanks to Ling, he handed it over to Edward reluctantly.

I turned my gaze to the ladder not too far away that led to the top of the train. Edward had retreated up to it the moment the train departed. None of us had seen him since and it worried me. Whenever we left Edward alone in his thoughts he always ended up disappearing.

I have to admit, the moment I started to climb the ladder and cracked open the small opening that led to the roof, the howling wind made me think twice about all of this. Sure, I could fight against a man that could make me explode with a single touch but the idea of train walking was something that did not appeal to me. Swallowing my fear, I slowly found my balance and pushed my hair aside that was flowing around me. Edward stared off into the distance with no emotions.

"Hey," I said loudly over the wind.

I sat cross legged next to him and he gave me a small, weal smile.

"This is a lot more than I thought." He spoke. "Four years ago Al and I started this journey to get our bodies back. I never imagined that it would be like this."

"Well, back then homunculi were just a theory and world traveling wasn't even thought of." I mused trying to lighten the air around us. It was enough to make him laugh. That was good enough for me.

"A lot of people depend on us now and they don't even know it."

"But we're so close Ed! You know how to get Al's body back now."

It was true. Not too long after we found out Hughes was still alive, Edward and Ling were swallowed by the failure of a Gate that was Gluttony's stomach. Upon their escape by opening the true Gate, Edward had come across Alphonse's body. Edward now knew how to open the gate, by committing human transmutation, without any harm befalling him. The only thing we had to do now was to stop Father.

"Maybe so, but there is still a chance that it won't work. The only way for Al to get his body back is for him to cross into the gate…I can't just drag his body out. It won't be sustained without his soul." He whispered.

I huffed and crossed my arms. I knew that but I was trying to look at our situation with our glass half full. Not half empty. Central was starting to come into our view now so Edward stood to his feet and offered me a hand.

"But even still, this is going to end right."

There was the Edward I knew. We were back down in the cabin with everyone by the time the train had reached its destination. May had fallen asleep so Alphonse carried her, and her small panda companion. Greed scowled at the fact that all of this was just a waste a time to him. The people of Amestris meant nothing, which is probably why Ling was now in our presence. That is what Edward believed anyways. I knew the true reason to be that Lang Fan was waiting for us in the crowd of people who there to greet their loved ones.

Edward pulled on his red coat and stared up at his brother with unenthusiastic eyes. We were all about to take our own separate ways. May was going to meet up with Scar so they can begin work on the alchehistory circle. Alphonse and I were going after Kimblee, who Greed let get away much to our dismay but for a reason since Kimblee was on his way to meet up with Pride. Edward was going to band together some of the men we had met in Drachma, and they were really chimeras by the way, to help our cause. Their leader, Olivier, Armstrong's sister, was in Central so that had to mean they were nearby. Ling and his forces would be joining Edward.

"Let's get this show on the road then!" Ling cheered.

All of us exchanged glances before we parted. All of us except for Edward and I at least. We had split up before for the sake of a plan but it was only for a short period of time. But now, the next time I saw Edward it might be on the promised day. I sighed and pushed out the raw emotions and forced a smile on my face.

"Be safe." Edward ordered suddenly. "Nothing reckless…and just think of everything I taught you." He finished with a murmur.

"Have a little more faith in me." I laughed.

"Let's go!" Ling called far behind Edward losing his patience. Alphonse just waited for me.

I bit my lip and stepped forward to rap my arms around Edward. It was going to be awhile until I saw him again so I tried the best I could to shove my bashful side away. His arms snaked around my waist tightly in return.

"Watch over Al for me too…" He whispered.

I nodded and started to pull away. What happened next was something I would forever look back on and wonder if it was real. When my eyes shut for a moments blink, soft lips brushed against mine. When my brown irises shot open Edward was standing a part from me with a grin. My face flushed and he ran off toward Ling.

"See you soon!" Edward shouted to both Edward and I before he and Ling vanished into the crowd.

I could not move. My feet were planted like someone had pour cement around me. Alphonse called for me at least a few times before I was able to take one step. Even though I was awakened from my stupor, I could not get the heat to leave my face.

"What's wrong Serena?" Alphonse asked innocently.

"I've seen that look before." Someone spoke from behind.

Alphonse and I turned to see a man, by his form, standing tall and shielded by a dark cloak. His voice was gentle and warm but it was familiar at the same time. Despite this, Alphonse stepped back a little unsure and ready for anything.

"I had that look when I met my wonderful Gracia!"

I smiled wide and ran toward the man with Alphonse at my side.

"Hughes!" Alphonse laughed wildly

I pulled and finger to my lips in a shushing manor while looking around for anyone who might had overheard. Hughes laughed lightly and removed the hood freely.

"It's ok. It's time."

**This one is short. But I had to give you all at least one more before the move. Tomorrow is my last day of work and I won't be off till late. My whole weekend is packed busy so there will be no time for me to sit and write. Since I skipped a head a year I needed to take a chapter to explain what has happened over the course of time and the next steps in line! I hope you all enjoyed it and I gave those who have been waiting for THE MOMENT lol aaaand now Mr. Hughes is back so WOO! Things are about to get interesting.**

**Thank you all to those who reviewed! So excited how many I got when I just posted the chapter today! Love you all and this chapter is for you!**


	17. Chapter Sixteen: Energy

**A/N: I know this update is long overdue…very long…but! I am back and ready to finish this story. Re-reading all the reviews this one received and the fact that it was still gaining some after more long hiatus…I just had to! Thank you all so much for your kind words and encouragement! I hope you all enjoy this just as much I enjoyed writing it.**

**Chapter Sixteen: Energy**

_"Be safe...nothing reckless..."_

Edward's words kept replaying themselves over and over in my head as I took in Alphonse and I's present situation. It was well late into the night and the only light we had in the forest was the small rays the moon was able to offer through the thick branches. Alphonse was a good few feet away from me while I sat perched up in a tree for any sign of Kimblee. "There's nothing reckless about chasing after a boom happy serial killer…" I muttered with a small grin already picturing Edward's glaring amber eyes. A loud crash off to my left caught my attention. "There's our guy!" I shouted down to Alphonse while gracefully jumping down the tree limb by limb. "Do you think Pride is with him?"

"I really don't know." I confessed. Once Alphonse and I were close enough to hear Kimblee's maniacal laugh our steady run turned into a soft walk. We needed the element of surprise to be on our side in order for both of us to take him down unscathed. Usually you would think two against one would be no big deal but when it came to Kimblee neither of us wanted to be over confident. "Let's wait just a little longer to see if anyone else is with him." Alphonse whispered. I nodded in understanding and found this situation comical. Normally, we would have run in without a thought out plan. Everything was just taken as it came. Then again, the only reason why we did that in the first place was because Edward always dove in face first. I wouldn't have minded if that happened now. I did miss him very much. "Is all of this truly necessary Kimblee?" A new voice piped in. I peeked around my hiding spot to see a young boy dressed in a tan suit. Pride. The Furher's "son." Now everything had changed. I had no idea what this young homunculus was capable of. Could Alphonse and I take them both? It was worth a try. A lot of people were depending on us. There was no time for second guessing. "You ready?" I questioned Alphonse with a smile. He nodded and began to lead the charge. We both ran straight for Kimblee. We had every step planned out. It would be easier to take out one together and move on to the next just the same. Over power and get it over with as fast as we could. Immediately Kimblee and Pride turned to us with surprise but they were ready too. In fact, there was something in Pride's eyes that frightened me…it was almost like he knew we were coming. Maybe I was just being paranoid. The dark circles on Kimblee's hands began to glow while he charged for Alphonse. Turning my back against Al's so I could keep an eye on Pride, I waited for the right moment. Feeling Alphonse dodge Kimblee's snare, we turned and switched places. Now Kimblee was my target. The circles on my gloves glowed brightly while I pressed my palms together. My eyes shut as I envisioned my last lesson Edward had given me…

_Edward pulled me up the ladder and on top of the fast moving train. He was in a hurry and it made me nervous. "What's so important you had to drag me up here?" I whined a little since he had woken me from a well deserved nap. I noticed how serious his eyes were and quickly shut my mouth from any further comments. Reaching for both of my hands, he flipped my palms upward. "Tell me how Kimblee uses his alchemy." He demanded. Lessons had started. "He changes the components in what he touches to turn it into a bomb…in a nutshell." I shrugged. "Any alchemist can do that. Maybe we all don't have the need to make bombs, but we have that power to change something into anything we can envision. With the proper material. Kimblee abuses that." I did not want to say anything. I honestly didn't know what to say. Where was he going with this? "Give him a taste of his medicine." He hinted with a smirk. I blushed and nodded finally understanding…._

Turning my eyes up to Kimblee who was stumbling slightly after Alphonse had evaded him, I grinned. "My turn." With that I placed my hands on his back and jumped away as fast as I could. Kimblee turned to me with confusion in his eyes and quickly began to survey his body looking for anything that could be wrong. Once he was sure he was going to be fine he threw his head back in laughter. "What were you aiming at kid?" I never answered. All there was left to do was wait. Suddenly, his face began to contort in an internal pain. "What's wrong with you Kimblee?" Pride spat. "He's not the only one who knows how to change the components in the human body," I began. "There's water in our blood stream and with just the right push it freezes."

Kimblee's lips were paling and turning a sick shade of blue. I could even see his breath in the air around him. "He'll freeze from the inside out." Alphonse concluded and readied himself for our next opponent. Once Kimblee had fallen limp to the ground I took my place beside Alphonse. "I suggest you give in now." I threatened. Pride smiled so innocently it made me sick to my stomach. "And why should I do that?"

"You're out numbered for one." Alphonse stated.

Pride's gaze turned away from us and shrugged. "I'm not so sure about that." Said a familiar sadistic voice. Chills rain up my spine and I felt the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end. "Envy…" I whispered not turning my attention away from Pride. "The tides have turned." He laughed and ran straight for Alphonse. "Not even!" I went to lunge for Pride but froze in place when I noticed the shadows of the trees around us moving in unnatural ways. The shadows turned to hands and grabbed Alphonse. "Al watch yourself!"

"No Serena, turn around!" Alphonse yelled urgently. I was a little too late to react. The only thing I saw was Envy's grinning face before the world around me went black.

~.~.~.~.~

I don't know how much time had gone by when consciousness finally came back. The air was cold and my arms were numb. I could feel a heavy binding on my wrists. Opening my eyes I took in the dark room. As far as I could tell I was left alone. My hands were bound with wire above my head which explained the numbness I felt. "About time you came around." I glared over at Envy and made a mental note of the door he stood before. "Well, if you wanted a livelier captive maybe you should have left me awake." I stated with a small roll of my eyes. "But you were one that didn't talk." His statement was so casual it was almost sickening. "Just get to the point. Why am I here?"

"I'll answer that one child."

Envy and I turned to the newcomer. The man was shrouded by a tattered clock but I could faintly make out blonde hairs from the small traces of light that dance over him. I squinted trying to see more. He slowly strode closer to me and I briefly caught amber colored eyes. "Just like Ed's…" I noted mentally. "Envy and Lust told me about your little incident in Laboratory Five. They said you were quite the character but you look like a normal human to me." I flashed my eyes to Envy in question who was not even paying attention anymore. "But there is more…you're not a part of this world are you? Every human in this world doesn't match the energy that comes from you when use alchemy…it's almost like the energy from that place..." The man went on and he was really just talking to himself. Not making any sense. "What place?" I interrupted. "The Truth. Have you seen it?" He questioned. I opened my mouth to answer but waved me off. "No of course you haven't…other wise your alchemy wouldn't be where it is at now."

I frowned slightly bothered by his obvious insult to my skills. But now was not the time to be defending myself in that way. I needed a way to escape. "You're having a party and didn't even invite me?" My breath caught in my throat as I looked urgently over at Greed. If Ling was here then that meant that Edward was not far behind. Greed turned to me in shock but quickly covered it with a grin. "And who's this?" He played while marching before me. "Now how did you get yourself into this mess?" He whispered quietly. "What do you mean? I planned this." I replied softly. Scoffing Greed turned the cloaked man and moved just enough to be a barrier between us. Now was the time to start moving. "A test then." The man stated suddenly while holding a hand towards Greed. Red sparks shot from his fingers. I kept myself from calling out to Greed. I couldn't break his cover. But that wasn't the only thing that stopped me. It was the pain. My vision was blurring and my body felt lighter than air. I felt myself falling forward and tried to catch myself but I just could not see straight. Greed reached to pull me up but his hands just passed through my now transparent form. "What's going on?" He questioned still trying to play his part. "I used her for alchemy. She's from the other side of the gate. That much is proven now. Alchemists use those people as energy for their transmutations when they die…now one of those people is here in this word…who knows what kind of alchemy we can accomplish." The man laughed while pulling his cloak down. Long blonde hair framed his stern sharp face and his amber eyes danced with delight. "Ed and Al's father…" I stuttered in surprise. "We homunculi call him father." Greed informed darkly.

I nodded and slowly stood to my feet. My body was slowly turning back to normal. I did not understand everything that Father had explained about me nor did I know how he had controlled the alchemic energy that was apparently inside of me but there was one thing I knew for certain: I would not be able to hold on in this world if he continued to use it.

**A/N: Well I am going to end it here! I had so much fun with this! I'm actually already starting chapter 17! I would not be surprised if I get it out tonight! Please review! They keep me going! **


	18. Chapter Seventeen: If it Ended

**Chapter Seventeen: **

**If it Ended**

"Well, this should speed up the process..." Father muttered to himself.

I was still struggling to gain complete control of myself. So far my vision was restored but my body did not want to cooperate with the movements I needed to get out of here. I needed Greed to stall for enough time for a few more moments. I needed to find our escape. So far the only thing that stood between my freedom was Envy and after the run in I had with him in laboratory five, I was not sure if fighting him was the best option. I grinned at a sudden idea. I did not need to fight him at all. I just needed to incapacitate him long enough to make a run for it.

"Envy," Father started which turned Envy's attention to the man. "Take Lust and Gluttony and go to Sloth. It seems our wonderful circle won't need to be so extravagant." Envy raised an eyebrow as a signal for him to continue. "With her energy we won't need so many sacrifices..." The man smiled.

I stumbled back a few steps. The man turned a soft gave to me. "Oh don't worry! It will be nearly painless. I already know what to do. Sacrifice a town, and your life energy…you will die here and return to the gate where your energy can be used once more."

I was truly terrified. All those times before when I had felt fear rush through me did not compare to this. I could not think straight. Right now I needed to escape but the only thing that was rushing through my mind was if I were to die in that transmutation…would I die or return home? Would I have the chance to say good-bye to anymore? What would happen to my family back home? How would Edward and Alphonse defeat this man? Would they be able to?

"Snap out of it kid and move." Greed hissed.

Shakily, I held my arms out before me and concentrated on the task at hand. I imagined the ground below us freezing and a wall coming between me and the enemies. But something felt off. Ignoring the feeling I slammed my hands to the ground…nothing happened.

"Lose your skill?" Greed laughed but stared in wonder.

"Why isn't it working?" I cried.

"Alchemy doesn't work in this room." Father laughed.

"But you just used it?" I wondered aloud.

"Let me rephrase: Alchemy doesn't work for humans. But it was a good effort."

Father took steady steps towards me. I felt Greed stiffen. Turning I saw his unbreakable shield cover up his hands. "Get ready to run." He ordered. He was going to break his cover. If this man knew that Greed was no longer on his side that could ruin any lead we could get. True we knew most of their plan if not all of it, but it would not hurt to hear a counter attack they may have up their sleeve. Before I could protest a loud crash sent Greed and I to the ground. His full shield was up while he protected me from the falling debris.

"What do we have here?"

That voice! My heart jumped in my chest and my eyes searched for him. Edward stood with a large grin plastered across his face and arms crossed.

"About time short stuff." Greed muttered under his breath. It was quiet enough that even I barely could make it out but Edward pierced his golden eyes at him like he heard him loud and clear. His eyes shifted to me in shock and were quickly turned back into his sharp glare. He did not need to say a thing for me to know what he was thinking.

_What are you doing here?_

I shrugged and smiled sheepishly with a small wave. I was going to get an ear full from him later. There were more important things now. Edward clapped his hands together ready to transmute but stopped suddenly. What came across his face was something I had never seen before. Pure hatred.

"Dad?" He questioned.

"It's not him Ed!" I cried hoping that he would listen.

He dropped his arms and stepped back slightly. It was not until I noticed that Greed was not at my side that I began to understand why but that was short lived when Edward stared on in confusion. Greed was in a sparing mach with Envy laughing manically.

"Don't fight him here. Take her and go." He demanded.

"We can't leave you here alone with them!" I shot back feeling way more confident. I don't know if it was because Edward was here now or the fact that I could control my body again. Actually, I did know why…Pressure on my arm pulled me away from the brawl. "He'll be fine." Edward's tone was so empty it scared me slightly. While we ran for the exit I could feel my strength draining once more. Turning, Father had his arms raised with a diabolical smirk. Red sparks shot from his finger tips. His grin was wiped away when Greed hooked him across the face. In a second, I was on Greed's back with my vision spiking.

"This way." Greed's voice had changed. It was softer. Ling was in control now.

"Good to see you." I smiled while we ran down the halls.

"What the hell was that?" Edward questioned once the sun's rays had touched our skin.

Ling placed me on the ground once I told him I would be fine. Father had not been able to complete the transmutation so the effect was hardly anything on me. Dragging Edward along, Ling concluded that we could answer his questions in a different setting. We needed to get far away from here. To my surprise, 'here' was Central. The homunculi's hide out was under Central City.

"Where's Al?" I asked suddenly. What if he had gotten caught to?

"Last I saw he had Pride cornered. I thought you were with him though." Ling informed with a small smile. "My guess is we should group up. The situation has changed." He finished.

I sighed in relief. I do not know why I was so worried. Of course Alphonse would be able to handle himself.

"The plan was once we got Pride we would head to Doctor Knox's cabin. We had met with him previously and he said we could..." I muttered reminding them of the doctor we met when Long Fan was injured.

"Looks like we're going there then."

~.~.~.~

The sun had long since set when we made it to Knox's. By the time we had met with Alphonse, Pride had already escaped.

"I'm just glad to see you're okay Serena!" Alphonse stated happily.

"Yeah it was crazy." I laughed nervously.

"While we're on the subject: What happened?" Ling asked while slouching in his chair.

"Everything was fine. Serena was able to get Kimblee and we were gonna get Pride…but Envy came out of nowhere. I guess he only came to get you though since he left right away." Alphonse explained looking at me.

"He probably knew he wouldn't be able to take both of us if I came too." I thought.

"Either way, if you want to stop Father you need to keep her away from him." Ling said matter-of-factly pointing to me. I frowned and dropped my gaze to the ground.

Ling went on to explain everything that had happened while I was captive. The whole time Edward held my gaze. It was the first time that I did not know what he was thinking and it bothered me. Was he mad? Relieved?

"My guess is after the effect one transmutation had her…she might not have lasted a few more." Ling finished.

My heart fluttered in my chest. What if Edward had not shown up when he did? Would Greed and I have been able to make it out? I looked around at the friends that filled my company. How many transmutations would I have been used for before my life ended here. In that moment I realized that these people would not have known how much I cared for them.

I tap on my shoulder woke me from my thoughts. Ling and Alphonse were lost in their own conversation. Edward motioned for me to follow him so I did. Once we were outside I waited for his lecture but it never came. My gaze was turned to the twinkling stars. There was no way I would be able to wait for him to speak first if I looked into his eyes.

Things were about to change. There was not as much time as we thought we had anymore. Hopefully, Scar and Mae were close to finishing that counter circle. Our final battle could be just around the corner. It was possible that I may not make it past our victory. Summoning up the courage I finally looked Edward in the eye. He was struggling to find his words.

If my last moments in this world were to come I would be okay. I had such an amazing adventure here. I laughed, cried, gained some pretty interesting battle scars and learned a lot. It was everything I could have ever wished for and more. But there was something even more that I had gained. Taking slow steps closer, I slowly put my arms around Edward's neck and held him close. They say that you should live every day like it was your last.

"I'm glad we made it in time." Edward finally spoke quietly while his arms came around my waist.

If it all was going to end I wanted to leave here knowing I did everything. So I pulled away and stood on my toes and kissed Edward Elric.

**A/N: Good spot to end don't you think? There's probably two or three chapters left in this story **** getting closer. I hope you enjoyed! Please review! They make me want to write more and update faster!**


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